Book 3 - The Vegas Revelations
by GailDunn2
Summary: 3rd book, follows "Playlist" and "The Winchester Prophecies". Bobby sends Sam, Dean, Castiel and Gail on a strange holiday with dire consequences. Not everyone in Hell is bad, and not everyone in Heaven is good. Is there anywhere that's safe from their enemies?


BOOK 3 - THE VEGAS REVELATIONS

\- 1 - Aces on High

When Castiel got the private call from Bobby on Angel Radio, he was a little surprised. He knew that Bobby was in Heaven, of course, but his old friend kept a low profile there and Cas had not really seen much of him.

But now, this message, asking Cas to meet him in Heaven, outside God's office? And that had been it. The communication had ended there.

This must be serious. Why on earth would God be summoning both himself and Bobby to His office for a meeting this late at night?

Castiel turned to Gail, who was sitting on the couch reading a book. He knew she wouldn't have received the message as it had been sent on his private frequency, but he had made a vow to himself to include her in all things and he intended to keep it.

"I just got a call on Angel Radio from Bobby Singer," he told her.

Gail put down her book and looked at him inquiringly. "That's funny, I didn't hear anything," she said.

"This was on my private frequency," he elaborated.

She frowned. She knew that a few higher-ranking Angels had access to private channels, and Castiel certainly qualified for one.

"What did he say?" she asked him, curious.

So he told her about the request Bobby had made. Like Castiel, Gail was concerned. "It must be pretty serious if you're both being summoned to God's office this late at night," she remarked, echoing his thoughts. "You'd better get going, then." She picked her book back up. "You'll have to fill me in when you get back."

He walked over to her and sat beside her on the couch, taking her hand. "I want you to come with me," he told her.

She looked up from her book, surprised.

He smiled gently. "I'm sure God won't mind. I think he realizes we're sort of a package deal now." His smile widened as he recalled the last visit the two of them had had with God. "Especially since we openly declared our love for each other the last time we were there."

She laughed. Now that they had spent so much time together alone and had been through so much together as a team, he was more Cas than Castiel to her, and she was glad. He seemed happier and more relaxed, and it did her heart good to see him this way.

Gail put her book down. "OK, I'll tell you what. I'll go with you, but if God wants a private meeting with just you and Bobby, I'll wait outside in the reception area. I wonder if he keeps magazines there," she said mischeviously.

They popped into God's reception area a moment later. Strange; it was empty. No Bobby.

Castiel waited a minute, looking around, but all was quiet. If he was supposed to meet Bobby here, where was he? Another minute. Still no Bobby. He looked at Gail, brow furrowed. She shrugged. She had never met Bobby, had only heard about him through stories Cas and the Winchesters had shared, but he didn't seem the type to be late to a meeting, especially not to a meeting with God.

When he could no longer wait, Castiel tapped on God's closed office door.

"Come in," a voice called from inside the office. The voice was muffled, but it sounded like Bobby's voice. Odd.

Castiel pushed open the door, beckoning to Gail to follow. She came, but timidly. Regardless of what Cas had said, she didn't know if she should just barge in with him if she hadn't been invited.

Once they were inside the office, Cas saw Bobby in God's chair, sitting behind God's desk. Was he playing around? God was nowhere in sight. What was going on here?

Bobby stood and came around the desk, offering his hand to Cas. "Sorry, Cas," he said, smiling. They shook. Cas was used to the handshaking ritual by now, but he was incredibly confused. Where was God?

Now that Bobby had Godly powers, he could read Cas's thoughts loud and clear. OK, he'd had his little joke; time to clue the poor guy in. And that must be Gail, peeking over his shoulder like a child trying to look but not be seen.

Bobby said to Gail, "Come on out, dear, it's OK, I don't bite, I promise." His beard twitched as she moved to stand beside Castiel. Bobby extended his hand to Gail and she took it. "I'm Bobby Singer. It's good to meet you, Gail. I've heard a lot about you."

"I've heard about you, too," she replied. "I'm so glad to finally meet you."

After they shook hands, Bobby figured he'd better come clean about the New Order, so he looked at Cas and said, "I think you and Gail had better sit down for this." Cas was still looking distressed, but he sat in one of the chairs opposite the desk, and Gail sat down next to him. Bobby went around the desk to sit back down, and he could see that Cas was about to lose it, so Bobby said withput preliminary: "God has officially retired, and yours truly has agreed to do the job."

Both Cas and Gail's mouths dropped open at that. Poor Cas, Bobby thought again, it looks like he's going to faint. Bobby could appreciate what a shock this must be for him.

"Retired?" Cas repeated. His head was reeling. Truthfully, he had known this was coming; the last time he had spoken with his Father, God had mentioned retirement, and had offered Castiel the job. But to just leave this way, so abruptly, without a word...

Bobby felt for Castiel, he really did. God had expressed regret during their handover meeting that He could not personally say goodbye to His children, that that was just the way it had to be. However, He had asked Bobby to tell this to Castiel, and Castiel only.

Bobby did so now, as gently as he could.

Castiel's human side was hurt, and he was disappointed that his Father had left without so much as a goodbye, but his Angel side chastised him for feeling this way. God was God; who was Castiel to have expected a personal farewell? He guessed it was enough that his Father had singled him out to give the message to. It would have to be.

So, Bobby was God now. Castiel did not have a problem with that; he had known Bobby in life through their mutual association with the Winchester brothers, and they had worked together before. He knew Bobby to be a good Hunter with a great knowledge of the lore, and more importantly, he was a good man. Presumably, God had turned to Bobby after Castiel himself had turned the job down. There would probably be a lot of eyebrows raised among the longer-serving Angels over Bobby's promotion to the High Office; Heaven was not really much different than Earth when it came to office politics. But Bobby was the type of man who would not put up with any overt insubordination, and Castiel felt that he would command the respect of the Office once the Angels got to know him.

And if not, Castiel was prepared to back him up, however necessary. Another period of anarchy and war amongst the Angels had to be avoided at all costs. He didn't think it would come to that, but he would be vigilant just the same.

So Cas congratulated Bobby on the promotion, and pledged his full support. Bobby had expected no less, but he was pleased to hear it from Castiel, anyway. Bobby had always thought very highly of Cas; he also knew that Castiel was a favourite of God's, but more importantly to Bobby, he was like a third brother to the Winchesters. And that was the highest endorsement of all as far as Bobby was concerned.

Bobby looked at Gail, who had been sitting quietly listening to the mens' exchange. She was a new Angel, but Bobby had done his research and he knew that she had earned a special place in God's heart, and in the Winchesters' as well. He'd read the Prophecies in preparation for their meeting and had been amazed by how much Gail had been through in such a relatively short time.

"How are you doing, Gail?" he asked her. She looked startled at the question. "Fine," she said automatically. Bobby wasn't going to let her get away with that. If she was going to hang around with the Winchesters, she was going to have to be able to take some abuse. So he put his sternest face on and said, "You presume to lie to God?"

Now Gail was really freaked out. She didn't know Bobby, had only heard about him, and she had no idea how to respond to that. She looked at Castiel for guidance. Incredibly, he laughed out loud, and when she looked back at Bobby, he was smiling.

"Sorry," Bobby said, "I just couldn't resist."

Gail patted her chest. "It's a good thing I'm already an Angel, cause I think you just gave me a heart attack," she quipped.

Bobby laughed, but then his face turned serious. "I know how much you've been through recently," he said to her. "So, how ARE you doing, really?"

She thought for a minute. "Generally, OK," Gail replied. "I still think about Frank a lot." Her voice caught in her throat as she said it, and Castiel took her hand. They'd talked quite a bit about Frank recently, and he'd listened patiently as she reminisced about the brother she'd known in life. In a way, she'd had to go through the grieving process twice. The human Frank had been killed by Demons under Crowley's rule and buried by Sam and Dean outside the Winchesters' bunker. Gail had just started to work through this loss when she'd learned that her brother had been resurrected by Crowley and his mother and made into the worst kind of Demon, a Knight of Hell. And then, the final slap in the face: she herself had been forced to kill Frank after he had apparently killed Castiel. True, the thing Gail had killed had not been her brother, only a Demon wearing his face, but that fact did not negate the event, nor her sorrow.

Bobby cleared his throat. It was time to do his job. "God went over the situation with me before he left," he said.

She leaned forward. Maybe Bobby could give her the answer that Castiel couldn't. "Can you tell me - " her voice caught again, but she made herself continue " - is Frank in Hell?" Gail didn't see how he couldn't be, after all the horrible things he'd done while in Crowley's service, but she had to know.

Bobby frowned. "I'm sorry to have to tell you, but yes, he is," he answered her.

Gail's eyes stung and she bit her lip to suppress the tears. It wasn't fair, she thought bitterly. Frank had done so much good in his life. He didn't ask to be dug up by Crowley, and he certainly would never have agreed to work for the King of Hell if he had not been force-fed Demon blood. Gail had had some experience with that herself, when Crowley had done it to her before Castiel and the Winchesters had brought her back. Now here she was, an Angel in the presence of God, and Frank was in Hell. It simply wasn't fair, she thought again, fuming silently.

"You're right, it isn't fair," Bobby said to Gail. His eyes were staring directly into hers, but his expression was not unkind.

Oh, crap. Now Bobby was reading her thoughts, too. Well, why not? God used to do that all the time, and she had never been able to get used to it nor stop herself from thinking those kinds of thoughts in His presence. And now Bobby was God, wasn't he?

"I'm sorry - " she said to him. " - Do I call you God, or...?"

Castiel was startled by the question, but he'd been wondering about that too. The human part of him was not quite sure he could do it. Cas had known Bobby in life, and they had gone through a number of battles together with the Winchesters, but the idea seemed blasphemous. Only God was God, and he'd been the only Father Castiel had ever known. This was going to take some getting used to.

Bobby smiled at Gail, then looked at Cas. He'd heard what Cas was thinking, too. He'd have to learn how to turn that off sometimes or it was going to drive him nuts, Bobby thought. He wondered if deities drank.

"Bobby is just fine," he assured them. Then, since more seemed to be needed, he said, "Look, I'm not God per se, I just have His job. A lot of things won't change, but a lot of things will. I'm gonna make sure His vision for Heaven stays intact, but truthfully, we need to update some methods here."

Castiel and Gail were silent; both were impressed by Bobby's demeanour and by what he was saying.

Then Bobby turned back to Gail and said, "Unfortunately, even though God gave me his powers and a free hand, I'm not able to overturn any decisions He's already made. And that includes your brother, Gail." He frowned. "I'm really sorry. I know it's not fair, but my hands are tied."

Gail's heart sank. She had figured as much, but she was still bitterly disappointed. She felt responsible for Frank's fate, in a way; after all, she had been the one to kill him.

She and Castiel had had several spirited debates about this feeling of hers.

"You were in no way responsible for what happened to your brother," Castiel had said sternly, almost angrily. He hated to see Gail blame herself, when it had been Crowley, always Crowley, who had been solely to blame. Crowley had dug up Frank's bones and then turned him into a Knight of Hell, making Gail's brother into the worst sort of Demon there was, save for Crowley himself.

While Gail had appreciated the logic of what Castiel was telling her, emotion was not logical, and her feelings of guilt continued to haunt her. She knew that the thing she had killed was not her brother, not really, but she relived the moment of stabbing Frank's vessel over and over again. Gail had temporarily lost her mind when the Demon wearing Frank's face had stabbed Castiel to death, and she had in turn stabbed that Demon multiple times in her grief and anger. She had been miraculously able to bring Castiel back after Sam and Dean had carried his body out of the den, but Gail still remembered how devastated she had felt when she'd thought Castiel was dead.

She hadn't had the chance to work through all these feelings at the time, but ever since she and Castiel had returned to the apartment they shared, he had been trying to help Gail cope with her grief. Castiel had understood that she needed time, but what he didn't understand was why she was being so hard on herself.

"Crowley is the one responsible," Castiel had told Gail. He spat out the name bitterly. Ever since Gail had come into Castiel's and the Winchesters' lives, Crowley had been the source and the cause of Gail's torment. He was supposed to be dead, but had somehow survived, was surviving to this day. As an Angel, Castiel was not supposed to feel hate, but the Cas in him felt quite differently. The Cas side of him vowed to kill Crowley on sight the next time the little bastard had the misfortune of being in the same vicinity, and then Cas would burn Crowley's bones himself. See if he came back from that.

But until that happy day, Castiel would just have to be patient with Gail and provide her with the support she needed. Patience had traditionally been a strong suit of his, but he found himself lacking in that department when it came to anything on the subject of Crowley. Anger was a relatively new emotion for Cas but it seemed to be occurring more frequently, and he wondered how Dean was able to handle it. Cas resolved to talk to Dean about this the next time they were alone.

Gail looked crestfallen, and Bobby felt badly about it, but there was nothing he could do. Castiel was looking glum, brooding. Well, he was off to a rollicking start; his first official meeting as God and his two most special Angels were looking like he'd cancelled Christmas. Fortunately, Bobby had just the cure for that:

"So, what do you say we go down to the bunker and break the news to Sam and Dean that they'll have to pray to ME now when they want something?"

As Bobby had hoped, smiles crept onto Cas and Gail's faces at that. Cas in particular couldn't wait for the Winchesters' reaction to the fact that their old friend was now God.

"Can you do that?" Gail asked curiously.

"I'm God now, I can pretty much do whatever I want," Bobby smirked.

Just then, however, Bobby's in-house line buzzed and he looked down at the call display: Kevin Tran. God had appointed Kevin to the office of One True Prophet when He'd cast Chuck into Hell. Bobby glanced at his watch; why would Kevin be calling from his own office so late at night?

He held his hand up. "I'd better take this," he said to Cas and Gail.

Bobby picked up the phone. "What's up, Kevin?"

"Can I come and see you?" Kevin replied. "It's important, or I wouldn't be calling this late."

Balls. Bobby sighed. Well, he supposed it came with the territory. "Sure, come on over, Kevin."

He hung up the phone and said to Cas, "Something's come up. I'll try to make it as brief as I can. You and Gail go to the bunker and wait for me there. I'll call you on Angel Radio when I'm ready to come down." He smiled then. "Pump some coffee into the boys if need be. I've been looking forward to this for a while."

Cas and Gail laughed, the earlier pall broken. They said they'd see him soon and disappeared from Bobby's office.

Kevin tapped lightly on the office door and then entered.

"I'm sorry, Bobby," he said as he hurried in, "but I thought you needed to know about this right away."

Bobby saw he was holding a file folder in his hand. "What is it, Kevin?" He gestured for Kevin to have a seat, but Kevin remained standing. He looked agitated.

"I was rearranging some things in my desk and I found this," he said, waving the file folder excitedly. "There was a false bottom in one of the drawers and it was hidden there."

"What is it?" Bobby asked curiously.

"They're prophecies that Chuck wrote," Kevin replied. "It looks like he wrote them just before..." Kevin hesitated, not wanting to say the words. He hadn't liked Chuck, but to be cast down to Hell was the worst thing he could think of. Imagine having to spend eternity in Crowley's domain. Kevin had had all too many run-ins with Crowley when Kevin had been alive.

"...Before he left," Kevin finished. Then he fell silent.

"Well?" Bobby said impatiently. "What do they say?"

"That's just it," Kevin replied. "Most of them have to do with events that have already happened."

It took all the self-control Bobby had at that moment not to roll his eyes. Kevin was young and new to his job; and though the two of them had known of each other through their individual associations with the Winchester brothers, Bobby had died before Dean and Sam met Kevin.

Be that as it may, Bobby had the feeling that Kevin hadn't called him at this late hour to talk about events that had already happened, and of which Bobby was well aware. "What are you not telling me, Kevin?"

Kevin looked startled, then he remembered who he was talking to. He may have said to call him Bobby, but he was God now.

"There was an appendix added to the back of the manuscript," Kevin said. He held up the thin sheaf of papers that had been stapled to the back of the Winchester Prophecies. "The Vegas Revelations."

While Bobby and Kevin were talking in Bobby's office, two long-serving Angels named Jason and Xavier were talking in Xavier's.

Xavier was Upper Echelon, and he had been very upset to hear of Bobby's promotion to the High Office. Xavier had been serving God faithfully for centuries, never straying from the path, and when he'd heard rumours of God's retirement, he'd once again allowed himself to feel hope that his years of service would finally be rewarded. Then the rumour mill had issued reports that God had offered the job to Castiel. Castiel was Upper Echelon too and had seniority over Xavier, having served a bit longer; but he had also rebelled against Heaven in the past, and he had strayed from the path more times than Xavier could count. Now Castiel was working on Earth and was reportedly more human than Angel, and had a close association with a female Angel, the nature of which was highly suspicious. And, as if all that wasn't bad enough, Xavier still remembered The Fall, not to mention all the Brothers and Sisters who had died as a result. Many Angels here were new or seemed to have forgotten.

But Jason and Xavier had not forgotten. And while they were aware that Metatron had been the main architect of The Fall, both blamed Castiel just as much, if not more. He was supposed to be such a hero, yet he had been duped by Metatron then, and he had allowed Metatron's escape from prison recently. At last report, Metatron was still at large and roaming free on Earth. No Angel was safe as long as Metatron was free. He may have been stripped of most of his basic Angel powers when he'd been cast into Hell, but he was also one of God's Originals and as such, all he had to do was kill another Angel and steal his Brother or Sister's Grace and he would be able to borrow the power he needed. And they knew that Metatron had no qualms about killing.

If Castiel had gotten the job, Jason and Xavier had been planning to invoke the ancient rules and hold the tribunal. They could not follow him if they could not respect him, and the tribunal would have taken care of him, once and for all. But then, amazingly, he had turned the job down!

Xavier had been scornful, saying to Jason, "So, our Father offers the High Office to Castiel, the most screwed-up Angel in the history of Creation, and he has the nerve to turn God down!" The irony was lost on him at that moment in his outrage. Here they were, railing about Castiel having refused the job, when he was the last Angel they thought should have it. Old resentments run deep.  
Jason had been just as outraged, adding, "And I heard that Castiel actually brought his - 'girlfriend' - to God's office without an invitation, and that SHE advised him not to take the job!"

So intent were they on putting Castiel down that both Angels had missed the point; he had not taken the job, which was what they had wanted.

However, on this evening, Jason and Xavier had another beef. They had just heard that God had appointed Bobby Singer to the High Office, and they were once more outraged. In a way, this was even worse, by their logic. At least Castiel, as bad as he was, was Upper Echelon. Bobby was a newer arrival to Heaven, had only been there a few years. And from what they'd heard, he was a very unorthodox Angel, too. Bobby had kept to himself in Heaven and therefore no one knew too much about him personally, but it was common knowledge that he'd been a close associate of the Winchester brothers and, by extension, of Castiel's. There was that name again. Admittedly, Jason and Xavier did not know Bobby at all, but they definitely didn't approve of the company he kept.

Xavier was fuming. Apparently he had not even been in the running for the promotion. And this "Bobby" guy sounded like bad news. What experience did he have, especially compared against Xavier's own? From what they'd heard, Bobby was also pro-human. While as Angels, they were not anti-human per se, both Jason and Xavier were hardliners, always had been. They did not approve of Angels who consorted too familiarly with humans; those Angels tended to lose sight of the path God wanted them on. Look at Castiel as a prime example.

"Have you talked with the rest of the Upper Echelon about the new appointment?" Jason asked Xavier.

Xavier frowned. "Not yet, but I intend to." He made up his mind right then and there that he would circulate a memo to the other 5 members of the Upper Echelon, excluding Castiel of course, calling an emergency meeting to discuss the issue.

"The Vegas Revelations?" Bobby echoed what Kevin had said.

Kevin had finally calmed down a bit, at least enough to sit down in the chair across from Bobby, but now he leaned forward in earnest. "Yeah," he said, then added, "Sir."

Bobby's beard twitched in amusement. Ah, youth. "Bobby is fine," he told Kevin.

Kevin relaxed a bit at that, but he still seemed agitated. "But the Vegas prophecies are weird," he insisted.

Bobby's brow furrowed. "What do you mean? How so?"

"Well..." Kevin struggled to articulate what he was trying to say without being disrespectful. "You know how Chuck's prophecies were always so...detailed?" he asked Bobby, trying to be diplomatic.

Bobby thought that he knew what Kevin was getting at, but he used his newly acquired Godlike powers to peek into Kevin's mind to be sure.

His beard twitched again. "What you're so diplomatically trying not to say is that Chuck was a douche."

Kevin started to smile. That had been exactly what he'd wanted to say, but he didn't know if he should say such a thing to God.

"Don't worry, Kevin," Bobby continued, "I encourage people to tell the honest truth as much as possible. Makes it easier. Lets you know where you stand."

Kevin was glad to hear this. He had respected God, of course, but Bobby was a boss he could definitely work for. "In that case, yeah," he grinned. "Chuck WAS a douche. He took a lot of pleasure out of forecasting bad things for people, and he liked to go into great detail when it came to people he didn't like." He sat back. There. It was off his chest.

"Like Dean, Sam and Cas?" Bobby asked, but of course, he already knew the answer.

Kevin nodded. "Yeah. And their friend, that new Angel Gail. I haven't met her yet, but boy, has she ever had a rough time." He shuddered inwardly as he thought about everything he'd read. He knew what it was like to be targeted by Crowley. The King of Hell had kidnapped Kevin's mother and made Kevin believe she was dead, and he had also chopped off one of Kevin's fingers in order to force his compliance when Kevin had refused to translate the Demon tablet for him. Yeah, he knew how bad it could get being on Crowley's radar.

"Well, I did meet her a little while ago, and she's OK," Bobby told him. "She's Cas's..." he paused, not knowing how to finish the sentence "...friend. Sam and Dean's, too. So tell me, Kevin, what's so weird about these Vegas prophecies?"

"A couple of things," Kevin replied. "The first thing is - they're a lot more vague than anything else I've seen Chuck write, and they're incomplete."

Bobby mulled this over. God had told him as part of his briefing that he had shut Chuck down shortly before sending him to Hell. After the fiasco with Metatron, God hadn't wanted Chuck to be in the loop any more about anything. So these Vegas notes must have been written just before that time, which explained why they were incomplete.

"What else is weird about them, Kevin?" he asked.

"Well...they talk about an event coming up on the weekend in Las Vegas called a 'Supernatural convention'," Kevin said. "I was curious what that was, so I Googled it before I came here - thanks for the computer, by the way-" Bobby nodded at this, pleased his innovation was already paying dividends. Kevin went on, "- and you're not gonna believe it."

He went on to tell Bobby that there were things called Supernatural conventions that took place every year at hotels in major North American cities. "And get this," Kevin continued, warming to his subject, "they're based on a TV show that's based on the series of books Chuck wrote!"

Bobby was floored. He knew about Chuck's books, of course, and had found it funny that the fans of the "Supernatural" series of books had no idea that Sam and Dean Winchester were real men, about whom these prophecies had been written. But now to find out that there was a TV series as well? He didn't know if he should be amused or appalled. He settled for a little of both.

"What do these, what do you call 'em, conventions, have to do with the prophecies, I wonder?" Bobby mused.

Kevin looked at the papers. "Like I said, it's vague," he replied, "but Chuck hints that Sam and Dean and Cas and Gail are supposed to go to Las Vegas this weekend and..." he shuffled the papers "...go to the Supernatural convention at the Rio Hotel."

"Can I see that?" Bobby extended his hand and Kevin gave him the papers. After scanning them for a moment, Bobby had to agree the prophecies were frustratingly vague. He didn't see anything that alarmed him, but you had to consider the source.

He looked at Kevin. "You're the Prophet now, Kevin. What do YOU think?"

"I think they need to go," Kevin replied seriously. "That's the other thing I wanted to tell you. I've been writing about the four of them and Las Vegas for about a week now, and I only found Chuck's writings tonight."

Bobby's eyebrows shot up. "You've been writing about this for a week?"

"Yeah, but I can't SEE it!" Kevin exclaimed, frustrated. "Every time I open my computer and start to write about it, my vision gets all blurry and I get a funny feeling and then I have to stop! I'm really sorry, Bobby, this has never happened to me before. When I saw that Chuck had been writing about it too, I was hoping his prophecies would be more detailed, cause it's been driving me nuts!" Kevin looked down, breathing heavily after his outburst.

Bobby waited patiently for Kevin to collect himself. He could see how much this was distressing the young Prophet, and the vagueness of it all was bothering Bobby, too. Why would two Prophets be convinced that the quartet should attend this convention in Vegas, but not be able to say why, or what would happen to them when they got there? As far as he knew, this was unprecedented, but let's face it, he had only been on the job for a couple of days now, and God was gone. What should he do?

"OK, Kevin, leave it with me," Bobby said. It was late and he'd had enough; he'd ask Sam and Dean, and Cas too, what they thought. And hopefully, the bunker would have a liquor cabinet.

Cas got the call from Bobby on Angel Radio that he would be arriving at the bunker in 5 minutes. Cas didn't want to spoil Bobby's fun of making the announcement to Dean and Sam, but he had to at least let them know their friend was coming. He and Gail had tried to stall the brothers for as long as they could, but it was late, and their human friends wanted to go to bed.

"Dean, Sam," Cas said.

"What, Cas?" Dean said wearily. He was always glad to see them, but Cas and Gail had been sitting here making small talk for quite a while now, and they were trying his patience. Just because the two of them didn't need to sleep didn't mean they had to stop him and Sam from doing it.

"An old friend of yours is coming by," Cas said enigmatically.

"What, now?" Dean groaned. Then he thought about it. Why would Cas be telling them this now, out of the blue, when he had been sitting here the whole time? Oh, no...

"Angel Radio?" he asked Cas.

Cas nodded.

Sam was puzzled. Who could possibly be calling Cas on Angel Radio this late that they would want to see?

Suddenly Bobby popped into the room. Sam and Dean's mouths dropped open in surprise. Since Bobby had died, he had only been able to appear to them in dreams. They weren't dreaming now, were they?

Dean reached out and pinched Sam on the arm, hard.

"Ow!" Sam yelled, yanking his arm away. "What was that for?"

"I wanted to see if we were dreaming," Dean smirked. He got up and went over to where Bobby was standing, his tiredness forgotten.

"Are you really here?" Dean asked Bobby.

Bobby's eyes crinkled. "I'm really here, Dean."

They embraced in their manly way, and then Sam came over and gave Bobby a hug too.

"How is this even possible?" Sam asked Bobby. "Did God change the rules all of a sudden?"

The brothers were so intent on their reunion with Bobby that they didn't notice Castiel and Gail exchange smiles.

"About that..." Bobby said. He was smiling too. "I think you'd better have a seat for what I'm about to tell you," he said to the brothers. "But first: Do you have any bourbon?"

"I doubt it," Dean said, frowning. Bobby had news from Heaven; knowing Angels and what went on up there, this probably wasn't gonna be good. And Bobby was an Angel himself, and he wanted a drink. How bad was it?

"I think we have some whiskey, though," Sam said, moving to the cupboards to look. He was thinking the same thing Dean was. And Cas and Gail were here, too. What kind of Angel crap are they going to lay on us? he wondered. Had Cas changed his mind about taking the job after all?

Sam produced a bottle of whiskey and took out a glass for Bobby.

"Better make it three," Bobby said, his beard twitching. "You guys'll need a snort in a minute."

Now the brothers really started to worry, and it didn't help when Gail and Cas exchanged glances and Cas said, "Make it five."

But he'd been smiling when he said it. Sam and Dean were really confused now. What was going on?

Crowley was sitting in his office in Hell, the usual glass of scotch in his hand. He had paperwork to attend to, but his heart wasn't in it. His heart wasn't in much of anything these days.  
And yes, it turned out that he had a heart, after all. Though he was in Fergus's body now and not his old one, ever since his mother had been killed and he had retreated back here after the scene at the den, Crowley had felt a strange sense of ennui set in. He'd had no love for his mother, he hadn't even liked her, so that couldn't be it. He'd actually admired the way Gail had dispatched Rowena so neatly. It was still puzzling to him how she'd done it, though, with the walls coated in sigils. Her Angel boyfriend had been powerless and had been killed by Crowley's Knight and Gail's brother, Frank. At least that had been the one bright spot that had come out of the whole mess. But then Gail had turned on Frank and killed him too, leaving Crowley without his best Knight and his protegee. That had been a real blow. Frank had served Crowley well. He'd turned out to be a ruthless and prolific killer, and Crowley missed their bull sessions.

It seemed that he had given up on Gail too soon, he thought regretfully. The way she had fallen upon Frank, stabbing him over and over again...of course, she had been crazed with grief over the Angel's death, but still, Crowley had to give her her due. He allowed himself a smile, remembering the sight of the Winchester boys carrying their fallen friend out of the den. He supposed he could say the name now that Castiel was finally dead. He'd been a thorn in Crowley's side for centuries, and Crowley would not mourn him.

The calculating part of Crowley's brain wondered how Gail was coping with the loss of Castiel. She had demonstrated prodigious powers in the den, along with a ferocity he didn't know she'd possessed. Now that he was one Knight short, Crowley wondered if he should revisit the original plan to recruit Gail. Had her grief turned her against Heaven? He knew better than anyone that she had a dark side, and a being with that much power could be useful to him. Yes, she was an Angel now, but Lucifer had once been an Angel too. Crowley took another sip as he mulled this over.

Unfortunately, Sam and Dean Winchester still lived. After all these years of tangling with the brothers, Crowley was still ambiguous about them. On the one hand, they had screwed him over many times, but he supposed that was only fair, as he had done the same to them. On the other hand, and he hated like hell to admit it but it was true, he had a grudging respect for the brothers. They had been through ordeal after ordeal since he had known them and they had always bounced back. And now it seemed that Dean and Sam had even outlived their Angel friend Castiel, who Crowley had always suspected would outlive everyone, himself included. He supposed that God was enjoying his retirement too much to even care about his alleged favourite son, as the silence from that quarter had been deafening and as far as Crowley knew, Castiel remained in the land of the dead.

Yes, Crowley knew that God had retired. He'd been a little surprised by the news, but truthfully not that much. The last time they had spoken on the Hotline God had sounded tired, distracted. The Hotline between Heaven and Hell was a closely guarded secret. It had existed since the beginning of time as a way for the rulers of both domains to communicate in an emergency situation. The Hotline was seldom used, but Crowley had received the call just recently about God's retirement, and his replacement was Bobby Singer, of all people. That had amused Crowley, and he wondered how that particular promotion was being received by the Old Guard in Heaven. He himself went way back with Bobby, and they had spoken easily enough considering their opposite ends of the spectrum. Secretly, Crowley thought that Bobby had been a shrewd choice on God's part. He would be a fair ruler, but he did not suffer fools and would not put up with any b.s. from anyone, Demon or Angel. Bobby did have an unfortunate affection for the Winchester brothers, though, and that fact would likely be a bone of contention between him and Crowley in the future if and when Crowley decided to end Sam and Dean's lives.

Crowley had not yet made up his mind about what he wanted to accomplish in the near future. He realized that everyone needed goals in life, immortal beings perhaps even more so than mortal ones. Crowley had been results-oriented in his previous existence, but since his mother had reanimated him as her son Fergus and then gone and gotten herself killed, he'd been at loose ends. He had found himself retreating here more often than not, drinking alone, brooding about missed opportunities and feeling depressed. Without Rowena around to challenge and goad him, Crowley could do whatever he wanted. But what did he want to do?

Unbeknownst to Crowley, his mother had forgotten the last few words of the ancient spell when she had reanimated him, and her lapse had created a boomerang effect which was afflicting him now. The King of Hell was slowly taking on the human emotions and characteristics that had plagued him in life. The constant drinking and the depression were two of the symptoms, and so was the lack of ambition Crowley was experiencing. He was becoming more Fergus than Crowley now, and his hold on the throne was dangling precariously because of it.

Elsewhere in Hell, Frank was shovelling coal into the furnace, shovel after shovel, as Metatron and Chuck had been doing before their escape. Crowley had not bothered to check on Frank's work assignment, partly due to Crowley's lack of focus, but mostly due to the fact that though Frank was still a Demon, his Knight status had been revoked upon his death, and he was just a grunt now.

All of the rage had left Frank at the moment of his death at his sister's hands, and he was now a pathetic wretch, resigned to his eternal fate. Frank's memories remained intact, and that made his torment worse, which he supposed was the point. He didn't blame Gail for having killed him. He had done some truly awful things as a Knight of Hell, things that were now beyond his comprehension.

What the hell had happened to him? In life, Frank had been a Hunter, a damned good one, and he had prided himself on his ability to kill monsters and keep humans safe. Then Crowley had killed him; maybe not directly, but Crowley had been the architect of his demise. Then, the further insult: Somehow, Crowley had raised Frank from the dead and converted him into an Alpha Demon, a Knight of Hell, and Frank had killed many humans under his command. Then, in the final and surreal confrontation in the den, Frank had murdered his sister's Angel companion, and then Gail herself had killed Frank.

So now he was in Hell, doomed for all eternity. In his former incarnations, Frank would have raged at the unfairness of it all, but now he felt as though he deserved his fate. Crowley or no Crowley, Frank had done those terrible things, and now he had to pay the price. He was only sorry that Gail had had to see him like that. Before Gail and her friends had arrived at the den, Crowley had called Frank into the throne room to inform him of their imminent arrival. He was to kill all three of the men, starting with the Angel Castiel. Crowley had informed Frank that his intention was to make Gail a Knight of Hell also, and then he and his sister would be reunited. As black as Frank's heart had become at that point, a part of him had wanted that very much. Crowley had told Frank that the only way to make that happen would be for Frank to kill his sister's companions, who were trying to turn her against her brother, and Frank had believed him. But now he realized that Crowley had been lying, had used him in the worst possible way. Thank God he had not killed his sister. Funny for a Demon to be thanking God, he knew, but Frank did so anyway. Frank hoped that Gail would be able to get over the trauma of losing her friend, and of having had to kill him; and as he continued to shovel, Frank threw in a couple of prayers for Gail, as well.

Once the bottle of whiskey was in the middle of the table and Sam shared out the glasses, they all sat down and looked expectantly at Bobby.

Now that he was here and looking at the Winchester boys, Bobby didn't know exactly how to put what he had to say.

"What is it, Bobby?" Dean said impatiently. "What's going on?"

Strangely enough, Dean's nervousness served to calm Bobby down, and he raised his glass and said, "Congratulate me on my promotion, boys."

"What? What are you talking about?" Sam said, puzzled.

Bobby threw the shot back and poured another. "You're looking at the new God," he said to the brothers, then threw that shot down as well.

Total silence. Sam and Dean looked at each other. Yeah, right.

"Very funny," Dean scoffed. "You tried to pull that before in my dream, remember? I'm not falling for it."

Balls. Bobby had forgotten about his joke. How ironic that he'd kidded about being God before getting offered the job. Almost like he had known. Maybe if this God thing didn't work out, he could do Kevin's job.

He smiled at Dean. "Sorry to tell you this, but it's true."

Dean looked at Cas, and Cas shrugged, trying to keep a straight face. "Why are you looking at me, Dean?" Cas said, as innocently as he could.

"Is he telling the truth?" Dean demanded of Cas.

"How would I know, Dean?" Cas replied, trying to keep from grinning. "You know us Angels; we can never give you a straight answer."

Bobby laughed; he couldn't help it. Cas's sense of humour had clearly improved in Bobby's absence.

Sam was staring at Bobby. "You're telling the truth," he said.

"Yup, I am," Bobby confirmed.

"What happened to God?" Sam asked, curious. Unlike Dean, Sam was pretty calm about the whole thing, it seemed.

"He retired," Bobby replied.

"God retired," Dean echoed. Bobby nodded. "He just...retired." Bobby nodded again. Dean was deep in denial; it was pretty funny.

"What did he do, buy a condo in Florida?" Dean continued, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Dunno," Bobby said, taking another sip of his drink. He was relishing the look on the boys' faces and Dean's reaction, but maybe it was time to get a bit serious. He had read the files, and after his conversation with Kevin, Bobby figured he'd better start doing his job. So he leaned forward then and said to the brothers, "All I know is that God left me in charge, and I damn well intend to do a good job."

Silence. Dean looked at Sam, who was already nodding.

"We're behind you, Bobby," Sam said. "Anything you need."

Dean recognized Bobby's serious face. I guess it's really true, he thought. Well, what the hell. Their lives were crazy, anyway; why not?

"God left me a stack of files," Bobby told them. "There are some people out there, both human and otherwise, that mean all four of you harm."

They all exchanged glances at that. Gail sighed. What else was new? She had been dealing with people, and otherwise, that meant them all harm continually ever since the Winchesters had picked her up off the pavement that night. She didn't know whether to laugh or to cry. Gail knew that the type of lives they led weren't exactly conducive to peace and serenity, at least not for too long, but still...

It was as if Bobby had read her mind, which he probably had. He WAS God now, after all, and it wouldn't even be the first time today he had done so. Why was it always her? Gail reminded herself to ask Castiel later if there were any techniques she could use to shield her thoughts.

But in the meantime, Bobby was looking at her. His expression was sympathetic though, and he was nodding. "It just so happens I agree," he said to her.

Sam and Dean exchanged glances again. They knew that Gail hadn't spoken aloud, yet Bobby was answering her. Hopefully there wouldn't be too much of that crap going on, Dean thought.

Bobby said, "Hold that thought," to Gail, and turned to Dean then. "No, there won't be too much of that crap going on," Bobby said to Dean sarcastically.

Dean looked startled; then he realized that Bobby was God now, so he had the power to read Dean's thoughts. Crap. He'd better watch what he was thinking around Bobby now. Not that it had ever really mattered; Bobby had always been able to read Dean like a book.

"You've gotta realize I'm just new to the job," Bobby said to Dean. "God left me with all these files and situations, then He left me with Godlike powers, and then He just...left." He looked at them all then, trying to articulate how he was feeling. "Look, guys, this is all new to me, too. I took the job because I thought I could DO a good job, but you've gotta know that it's gonna take a while for me to get used to it. For us all to get used to it." He gave Dean a brief smile. "One thing I'll have to work on is picking up all your thoughts. Believe me, I don't want to hear what's rattling around in there any more than you want me to hear it."

Dean pretended to be offended by that, but he was relieved. God or no God, Bobby or no Bobby, it was never a good thing to have all your thoughts known.

Then Bobby turned to Gail. "Same goes with you, Gail." He smiled at her. "I know we just met, but these guys will tell you I'm a straight shooter. It's just...I've been picking up people's thoughts if there are really strong feelings associated with them. God told me I can turn it on and off with a bit of practice, so just try to bear with me."

She smiled at him, appreciating his honesty. "I understand," she said. "It took me a while to get used to being an Angel. In fact, I'm still getting used to it." She gave Castiel a little smile at that. He still shook his head in amusement when Gail used the door to open the bunker, a habit she couldn't seem to break.

"But about what you were thinking, Gail," Bobby said, bringing them back to the point, "I couldn't agree more." He looked at the men, including all four of them in what he was about to say. "If it's OK, Gail, I'll tell everyone what you were thinking." She nodded; she would have said it aloud anyway. "Gail was thinking that you've all been through a lot lately, and you need a bit of a break. So, as my first official Godlike act," he continued, smiling, "I'm officially giving you all a week off."

They all looked at each other, then looked at Bobby. Could he really do that? And what exactly did he mean?

"That means no new cases, and I'll keep as much evil as I can away from you during that time. It means, you go on a vacation."

Sam and Gail started to smile. A vacation sounded like just the thing they all needed. Even Dean had to admit that he could use a break. Castiel was still bothered by Bobby's reference to evil forces that meant them all harm, but he recognized that the Winchesters had been under a lot of strain lately and would benefit from a bit of time off. He'd seen Sam smile at the mention of a vacation, and though Dean usually got bored and restless with too much time off, Cas had seen even him look relieved at the mention of a holiday. And of course, he had seen Gail smile as Sam had, and Castiel knew that, out of all of them, she probably needed a break the most. Gail had been through the wringer emotionally, and he thought a week off would do her a world of good.

Bobby looked at their faces and saw nothing but joy and relief. It did his heart good to be able to do this for them, but he had an agenda, too. Kevin had advised him that the four of them needed to go to the Supernatural convention, but he had not been able to say why, or what would happen when they got there. Prior to his orientation meeting with God, Bobby had always thought that prophecies were b.s., and had wondered like everyone else why God allowed certain things to take place. But God had explained a few things to him in that regard, and now Bobby had come to believe that there was a reason for most things. Sometimes it was all about the long game, and God had told Bobby that if He had to explain his methodology to everyone involved, nothing would ever get done. That actually made sense to Bobby; and God had clued him in on a few instances where things had worked out the way they were meant to, even though they hadn't seemed like it at the time. For example, God shared that He had imbued Gail with Healing powers from birth. He had been aware that they would be a burden to her at times, and would ultimately be a beacon to Crowley. From Gail's point of view, God's decision to give her this gift would seem like a capricious act of cruelty; once she had gotten on Crowley's radar, he had killed her entire family and subjected Gail to countless torments since. However, the fact that she had those powers had enabled her to heal Castiel twice, and the second time she'd been able to bring him back from the dead. God had forseen these events, with the assistance of Chuck's prophecies, and He knew that if Gail had been offered the choice between never having had the powers or saving Castiel's life even once, she would have chosen the latter. So there was a long game, an end result in mind for almost all of God's children, but not necessarily for them to know. After all, that was what faith was supposed to be all about.

Bobby had understood the logic behind what God had said, but after God had left, he'd experienced an internal conflict. When Bobby was a child [he knew it was hard to believe, but he had once been one], he had heard the expression "God works in mysterious ways". That expression had been quoted to him every time he had asked: Why? Why does God let terrible things happen to good people? And that had been his answer, that God worked in mysterious ways, and it wasn't for man to know, or even to question.

But he was questioning it now. When he'd agreed to take the job, the responsibility for the maintenance of God's files had fallen to him, which meant that the pieces were in place on the gameboard. If God's plan was followed to the letter, the principals involved would experience loss and suffering, but there was a purpose. God had advised Bobby that he was free to do the job the way he saw fit, but if Bobby were to decide to change any of the circumstances for any of the individuals, God could no longer guarantee the end result. But was it right for Bobby to keep his friends in the dark, and to allow them to suffer more pain and loss? Hadn't there been enough of that in their lives?

But while Bobby continued to wrestle with this ethical dilemma, he supposed he'd better lead by example and show a little faith himself. If he was going to buy into God's premise that everything, good or bad, happened for a reason, then Bobby had to send his friends where they were meant to go and trust in the endgame.

So he leaned forward and said to all four of them, saying, "And for your vacation, I want you all to go to Las Vegas. You'll leave tomorrow afternoon."

Dean perked up at the mention of Las Vegas. While he thought it oddly specific that Bobby said he wanted them to go to Vegas, and they were to leave tomorrow afternoon, he didn't let that bother him. Vegas was his dream destination for some time off. He could already picture himself throwing back some shots, playing poker, maybe even smoking a cigar. And the showgirls...he was sold.

Sam had also found the instructions oddly specific, and though he was looking forward to all the things that Dean was, he asked Bobby, "Why Vegas? And why tomorrow afternoon?"

Bobby frowned, but he had already made his decision, for better or for worse. "Just go with me on this one, Sam."

Sam looked at him for a moment, but let it go. This was Bobby, after all. He obviously had a good reason for sending them there. And Bobby was God now; maybe he wasn't allowed to say. Although they were old friends and went back a long way, Sam supposed the fact that your friend was now God might tend to alter the paradigm a bit. He smiled. "OK, Bobby."

Then Bobby stood and Said, "Well, it's late, and I'd better be getting back. And if I know you, Dean, and I do - " he looked at Dean pointedly, his beard twitching with amusement, "you guys had better get a good night's sleep. I have the feeling you're not gonna get much sleep when you get there."

They all laughed. Dean and Sam stood and shook hands with Bobby. Gail and Castiel stood as well, but when Cas approached Bobby to shake his hand, he said to Bobby, "Can Gail and I talk to you for a minute?"

Sam and Dean looked at each other. Angel stuff; that was their cue to leave. They said goodnight to everyone and went to their rooms, visions of neon lights dancing in their heads.

Gail looked at Castiel once the brothers left. What did he want to talk to Bobby about on their behalf?

He smiled at her and took her hand. "I'm not keeping you in the dark," Cas assured her, "I just thought this might be the perfect opportunity to ask for our gift."

Gail knew instantly what he was talking about. Back when she had first become an Angel, God had bestowed a gift upon her and Castiel, a gift they had not yet used. God had advised them that they could choose one day a year to be human, to be able to experience everything the way that humans did.

Initially, she was delighted by Castiel's idea. To be able to once again experience human pleasures on a vacation sounded like great fun. Gail had been human not all that long ago, and she'd found herself sometimes missing the sensations of eating a good meal or getting some sleep. But then she thought about where they were going, and thought about Castiel being human there. Would he have any idea what he was getting into? An Angel in Sin City; it was pretty funny, actually.

So Gail squeezed his hand once and said, "Are you sure?" For an instant his face fell, so she hastened to add, "It's just that...Las Vegas is a very, umm..." How could she put this? She tried again, "Las Vegas is famous for..."

But Cas was nodding. "Yes, I know." He smiled. "I have been on Earth for a few years now, you know."

Gail released his hand and held her hands up in mock surrender. "OK, OK, I'm sorry."

Then he leaned in closer to her and said, " Actually, I Googled it."

Gail laughed, wondering if Cas had any idea how cute he was sometimes. It was a girlish notion, but after all, she was a girl. Even if she hadn't been able to feel like one for quite a while.

Bobby cleared his throat loudly. "Someone wanna clue me in here?" he said, a little grumpily.

"Sorry," Gail said to Bobby. but she was still grinning.

So was Cas, but he saw the look on Bobby's face and tried to stop. He knew Bobby a lot better than Gail did, and that look meant Bobby's patience was wearing thin. Cas had been around humans long enough to know that you did not want to annoy one before you asked him for a favour, so he said, "My apologies, Bobby."

Bobby looked slightly mollified, so Cas quickly continued, "I'm hoping that our Father may have told you before He left about the annual gift that He had bestowed upon us."

Bobby smiled inwardly. He knew exactly what Cas was referring to. God had made a notation on their file, and He had also made a point to tell Bobby about it if the subject came up. And here it was. Bobby could understand. Who the hell would want to be an Angel in Las Vegas? He tried to keep his face stern, but felt a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. Cas HAD changed since Bobby had first met him, and as far as Bobby was concerned, he had changed for the better. Truthfully, though Castiel had always been a good ally and a loyal friend, Bobby always thought he could benefit from a little human influence. Frankly, Cas had had a bit of a stick up his butt back then. But clearly, his years with Sam and Dean had done Cas a lot of good, and having a female companion obviously didn't hurt, either.

So, feeling magnanimous, Bobby said, "I know all about it, Cas. And in fact, I'll do you one better. I'll give you a long weekend. Tomorrow's Thursday. At sunrise tomorrow, you'll both be humans, and you'll stay humans until sunrise on Monday morning. How's that?"

Their faces lit up like Christmas trees at what he'd said, and for the first time since he'd taken the job, Bobby actually felt a little like God. How great it was to be able to do something that made your friends so happy.

So he put one hand on each of their foreheads then, and a white light emanated from each hand, transferring his gift.

Then Cas shook Bobby's hand and thanked him, and Gail thanked him too, then shyly asked if she could give him a hug. He opened his arms and she hugged him, murmuring, "Thank you so much." Bobby gave her a brief squeeze; then, unexpectedly, he felt tears spring to his eyes. So he said goodnight and then vanished, leaving two very happy Angels behind.

When Bobby got back to his office, he emailed the plane tickets, the Rio Hotel reservation information, and the Gold Supernatural convention tickets to Sam. When he and Kevin had decided that the four of them needed to go there as per the prophecies, Bobby had asked Kevin to hack into whatever computer systems were necessary to make that happen on such short notice. No doubt the original God would have gone about things a little differently, but it was Bobby's job now, and he meant to drag Heaven's methods kicking and screaming into the current century. Not that Bobby knew how to do any of that crap, but that was why he had young Angels like Kevin on his staff. In the weeks to come, Bobby meant to modernize a lot of the procedures in Heaven, and if the Upper Echelon didn't like it, well, that was too damn bad. With the exception of Cas, they were a bunch of puffed-up prigs with inflated senses of importance, who thought they were more righteous than anyone else. He could only imagine how they'd taken the news of his appointment. The Angel Xavier was the worst of the bunch. Bobby wondered if he should talk to Xavier, maybe extend the olive branch; then he decided not. If Xavier had a problem with him, let Xavier make the first move. Otherwise, Bobby would leave him alone, as long as he left Bobby alone and let him do his job.

Bobby sat back in his chair, musing. He'd meant to talk to the four of them about Chuck and Metatron still being on the loose, and about Crowley, but he just hadn't had the heart after seeing their joy at the prospect of going on a real vacation. Oh well, they were only going to be gone for a long weekend. The convention was over on Sunday night, and he'd arranged for them to fly back on Monday morning. The initial plan was to give them about a week off, but he would see how they were doing when they got back. They might need a couple more days' rest to nurse their hangovers, he thought with amusement. Dean, and to a lesser extent Sam, let loose in a 24-hour town with an unlimited supply of booze available? Yeah, he'd have to try to give them the full week if he could. And the Angels? Human for 4 days in Vegas? Bobby admittedly didn't know Gail very well, but she hadn't been an Angel for that long, so Bobby thought she might be OK. It had been his experience that women were generally a lot more sensible than men when it came to self-indulgence. But Cas? If Bobby weren't so amused he might have shuddered. They'd better keep a bit of a leash on him unless they wanted to bring him home in a box.

Of course, drinking and gambling might not be the only human pleasures Cas wanted to explore. Bobby was now fairly certain that when Gail and Cas got to Vegas, they might be interested in doing a little more than hand-holding. He had booked them a room together with this assumption in mind. As far as Bobby knew, though he tried not to think of these things too often, poor Cas had never experienced that kind of earthly pleasure before. Though it had regrettably been too long in Bobby's case, at least he had fond memories to draw on from time to time.

As usual, whenever Bobby's thoughts drifted back to old relationships, it was Rowena he thought of. Yes, the man who was now God had once had a relationship with the mother of the King of Hell. Funny how life worked out. Of course, Bobby hadn't known who Rowena was at the time. To him, she'd just been a beautiful, vivacious redhead who could match him drink for drink and quip for quip, and he'd fallen for her, hard. When the Winchesters and Cas weren't around, sometimes she would come over to Bobby's house and they would spend a few glorious days together, but then his world or hers would always come calling and he wouldn't see her for a while. He'd known she was a witch, of course. You couldn't have his background and not know. But he'd been infatuated with her and had made himself look the other way. Then one day, Rowena had told Bobby that she wouldn't be coming back. It had been great fun, but they were who they were, and that was never going to change. So they'd spent one last night together and in the morning, she was gone and so was one of his Demon blades. Bobby had hoped she'd come back one day but she never did, and that was probably just as well. But it still hurt to think of her now and then.

Bobby had never told any of his friends about this dalliance, rationalizing that it was none of their damn business what he did in the bedroom and on his off time. But then he had read the Prophecies and God's files and had been shocked to learn of Rowena's true identity. He wondered if Rowena had stolen his Demon blade intending to use it to kill her son. He hoped so; this thought was the only thing that might mitigate his feelings of guilt for having taken up with her in the first place. But the fact was that Crowley still lived but Rowena was dead, and at Gail's hand, no less. But Bobby couldn't blame Gail, especially not after he'd found out what Crowley, and, to a somewhat lesser but still important extent, Rowena herself, had done to Gail. Hell, he would have killed the bitch, too.

The morning that Bobby had awoken alone, Rowena having flown the coop, he'd discovered that she'd left him a present. It was a colourful, gaily-wrapped package that looked like a book of some kind. But he had never opened it. Maybe because her departure had been too fresh and too abrupt. Irrationally, he'd felt that if he opened the present, it would be like a formal acknowledgement that she'd left his life for good. So Bobby had kept the unopened package all these years. In fact, it was in his bottom desk drawer right now. He didn't worry about the security of the thing; this was God's office, after all. He checked now to see if it was still there and of course, it was. Bobby made no move to open it, though. Now that he knew what he knew about her, Bobby had to admit he was a tiny bit afraid to. But as long as it stayed wrapped, Bobby felt it was OK where it was, right under his nose. After all, what kind of harm could a book do?

Gail opened Sam's laptop and saw that sunrise was due to occur in 5 minutes. She'd felt weird being an Angel at times, but now it felt really strange to think she'd be a human again in 5 minutes, albeit on a temporary basis.

She looked at Castiel across the table. She could only imagine how he must be feeling. Mostly nervous, probably. Even though this gift was something they'd both wanted, now that it was almost here he must be feeling at least a little apprehensive. Unlike her, he'd only been human a very brief time in the past, and in his case it hadn't been a positive experience. Frankly, she was a bit surprised he seemed so willing to try the experience again. But he'd been alone in the world before, and was being hunted by his own kind. This time, he'd be with his friends on a vacation. The two situations were very much different. But, still...

"Sunrise in 4 minutes," she announced to Castiel. He looked at her with a start, as if he hadn't been expecting the update, even though they'd agreed earlier that Gail would keep an eye on the time.

She felt for him, and wanted him to look on this as a positive thing. Otherwise, what was the point?

"If there's anything Angel-y that you want to do, you'd best do it now," she teased, smiling at him.

He smiled back, but he still looked like a child anticipating a bad report card, so Gail stood up and walked around the table, extending her hand. "Let's go watch the sun come up," she said to him.

Castiel hesitated just a moment and then took her hand. They disappeared and then reappeared outside the bunker, their last official Angel act before the coming four days. "There you go," Gail quipped, winking at Castiel and making him smile.

Then they stood hand in hand and watched the sunrise. Why didn't they do this more often? Gail wondered. It was glorious. Red, yellow, orange colours painted throughout the sky. Their Father's canvas, spread out before them.

They both gazed at the beautiful sky in silent admiration, and after a few minutes, Gail said, "Okie-dokie, here goes..." She tried to disappear back into the bunker, but nothing happened.

Castiel sensed what she was trying to do and he attempted the same thing, with the same result. He looked at her.

"I guess we're human now," he said simply.

"I guess so," she replied. Then: "And suddenly, I'm really hungry for breakfast. And I'm going to drink a pot of coffee, all by myself. I'll have to make a second pot for you guys."

Cas smiled. All of a sudden, his stomach rumbled. Wonder of wonders, he was hungry too, and coffee sounded like just the thing he needed to begin with.

"That sounds great," he told Gail. "But first..."

He put his arms around her and kissed her on the mouth. This was a human kiss between a man and a woman, not at all like the chaste kisses they'd sometimes shared in the past. Gail responded, wrapping her arms around him and opening her mouth to his.

They stayed there like that for a while, kissing and caressing each other; but when their hands began to explore each other's bodies, Gail put a reluctant stop to it.

"Let's go make breakfast," she said to Cas, just as his hand was about to go where she very much wanted it to go. She stepped away from him slightly, though she really hated to do it.

Cas nodded. He realized this wasn't the time or the place. It was difficult for him to stop too, but they had four whole days and he could wait a bit longer. So he took her by the hand and they descended the steps into the bunker to wake Sam and Dean.

Dean was already awake, and feeling like a kid on Christmas morning. He was throwing on some clothes when Cas knocked on his door.

"It's me," Cas announced, so Dean said, "Come in."

"Good morning," Cas said, smiling.

"You're looking awfully happy this morning," Dean said, looking at him a bit suspiciously.

"I've got something to tell you," Cas said. He sat down on the bed for a moment, but he was so excited that he bounced right back up onto his feet again.

"Yeah? What's that?" Now Dean was really suspicious. Cas looked like he had ants in his pants. Not some more Angel crap, Dean hoped. He was about to leave for Sin City; the last thing he needed to be thinking about was Heaven, or Angels, or even Bobby, aka God. Holy crap, he hoped that Bobby hadn't told Cas to watch over him while they were there. Best friend or not, Dean would have to ditch him. Dean definitely planned on doing some non-Angelic things there.

But Cas had good news. He told Dean about the gift. He and Gail were now human, and would remain so until Monday morning.

"So we can eat, and drink, and - " Cas started to say, but could not quite bring himself to finish the thought now that it was real.

" - And what?" Dean knew full well, but for all the times they'd screwed with him about it, Cas deserved a little payback.

"You know," Cas replied evasively. And was he actually blushing? Oh, this was too good.

But Dean's urge to tease Cas some more waned when Cas looked at him and said, "I'm a little scared, Dean."

Oh, crap. There went his fun. Dean couldn't rib him if he was going to go and say something like that.

"Why?" he asked Cas, though he had a pretty good idea.

"Because I've never..." Cas started to say, but he didn't have to finish.

Frankly, even though Gail and even Cas had been ambiguous about the subject, Dean had suspected as much. He sighed. What the hell could he possibly say here? But all joking aside, Cas was his friend and he guessed he had to say something.

"It doesn't matter," Dean reassured Cas. "We all had to start somewhere."

"How did you..." Cas began. Human or no, this was really hard for him. But if he couldn't open up to Dean, who could he open up to? "How did you know what to do?"

Dean suppressed a smile. He owed it to the guy to try to take this seriously, but honestly, it was kind of funny.

"You'll know, Cas," he said, clapping his hand on his friend's shoulder. "You'll just know. It'll be fine, really. You'll see." Fine? Dean thought. After who knows how many centuries, it'll be fan-freaking-tastic. Then his face broke into a grin; he just couldn't help it.

"Come on, let's go get some coffee," Dean said to Cas, who didn't look like he felt much better. But there was nothing more Dean could do for him, except to say, "Don't worry so much. By this time tomorrow, you'll be a new man."

Cas smiled then, almost reluctantly, and they went down the hall together, where Sam and Gail had the coffee on and were making breakfast. Gail looked up at them from setting the table, and from the way she and Cas were looking at each other, Dean knew that Cas was going to be just fine.

A few minutes earlier, Gail had entered the kitchen to talk to Sam, just as Cas was knocking on Dean's door. Funny how she and Cas had just automatically approached the brothers that way. Or, maybe not; Dean and Cas had always had their special bond, whereas Gail had gravitated to Sam from the beginning. While Dean and Gail had shared some moments recently and were now closer as a result, Sam had been her go-to guy ever since she had met the brothers.

She told Sam about the gift as he put the coffee on. He remembered Cas having told him and Dean about it a while back, but Sam was surprised and pleased that Bobby had extended their time. Like Bobby, Sam had been wondering how Cas would cope with the excesses of Las Vegas as a human. They would have to keep an eye on him, make sure he didn't overindulge too much. It amused him to think of Cas with a massive hangover. OK, maybe he'd have to see that, after all. A bit of payback might be in order for all the times Cas had kept him and Dean awake when they'd been really tired.

As Sam and Gail bustled around in the kitchen preparing breakfast, he looked at her curiously. Gail was rushing around the kitchen excitedly, humming a tune, smiling to herself. After all they'd been through together, most of it quite dark and dramatic, he'd never seen her quite like this.

"You're really excited to be a human again, aren't you?" Sam said to her.

Gail turned to him. "Yeah, I am," she replied, still smiling. "Vegas buffets, having a few drinks...what's not to like?"

Gail was looking at him innocently, but Sam wasn't buying it. "How about Cas?" he asked, trying to draw her out.

"What about Cas?" she asked. But she'd turned back to stirring the eggs, avoiding his eyes. Was she blushing?

Sam grinned. Gotcha, he thought. And when Cas and Dean came into the kitchen and Sam saw the look that Gail and Cas exchanged, his suspicions were confirmed. If Dean was worried about these two cramping his style once they got there, Sam would be able to assure him to the contrary. He and his brother might not even see that much of the couple this weekend. He smiled to himself and made a mental note to tell Cas about the Do Not Disturb card.

After they'd all had breakfast and coffee, the four of them went out to the library area. Sam had informed them that this morning, before he and Gail had started making breakfast, he had checked the computer and there was an email from Bobby. The tickets were attached for the plane and the hotel had been paid for. Sam had grinned at that. There weren't too many people who could say that their vacation was subsidized by God.

And, there had been more good news. As Sam was printing up the attachments, he saw in the body of Bobby's email that he had had Kevin visit theirs and Cas and Gail's bank accounts and, umm, supplement them with some spending money for their trip. This just kept getting better and better.

There was one puzzling thing, though. Bobby had also attached tickets for something called a Supernatural Convention, an event that was apparently taking place in their hotel that weekend. Sam printed those out too, thinking of Chuck's books. Did this have something to do with that?

Bobby advised in his email that he wanted the four of them to go to the convention at some point on the weekend. The attached tickets were good for the duration of their stay, so they could decide at which point they wanted to go. But Bobby emphasized that they had to go. He couldn't tell them why, but it was very important.

So as they all stood in the library, and Sam distributed the tickets he'd printed to everyone, Dean frowned as he looked at his convention ticket. This smacked of Chuck to him too, and he didn't much like it. All he and Sam needed would be to run into a bunch of whacko fans of the books. And now, just to add to the fun, there was a TV show based on the books, and actors from the show would be appearing at the convention. Dean was admittedly a little curious about what the actors portraying them would be like, but honestly, he'd just as soon leave the whole thing alone. But Bobby said he wanted them to go, though he couldn't tell them why. Dean sighed. More enigmatic crap from Heaven. So what else was new? Did Bobby mean he couldn't tell them, or was it that he WOULDN'T tell them? Dean hoped that being God wouldn't change Bobby's personality too much. He guessed there were a lot of things connected to the job that they weren't allowed to know about, and that was fine, to a certain extent. Bobby had always been a straightforward guy, and Dean was hoping he'd stay that way. But for now, Dean would agree to abide by Bobby's wishes; but not because Bobby was God. Because Bobby was Bobby.

After they had their tickets in hand, they had a few hours to kill before their flight, and Gail had an idea.

"Guys, can you do me a favour?" she asked Sam and Dean. They looked at her inquiringly, and she continued, "I'd like to get some new clothes for our trip."

Dean rolled his eyes. "Why does that not surprise me?" he said to her. "Give a woman a vacation and she'll turn it into a shopping opportunity."

Gail knew he was teasing her, but she couldn't let him get away with that. So she walked over to Dean and nudged him. "Who says they're for me?" she said, smiling. She gestured towards Cas, who was folding the printouts Sam had given him for himself and Gail and putting them into his inside coat pocket.

Right. OK. Dean had to admit she had a point there. Cas had been wearing the same clothes almost every day since they had met years ago, the clothes his vessel had been wearing when Castiel took him over. But Cas was a human, at least right now, and he was going to Vegas. They should probably get the poor guy a pair of jeans, at least.

"Come on, Cas," Dean said, and Cas looked up. "Where?" he asked Dean.

"We're going to get you some Vegas clothes," Gail said, smiling. It seemed she couldn't stop smiling; she was really looking forward to this vacation with her guys. "Cue the '80s montage," she said, looking at Sam. He rewarded her with a laugh.

Dean got his keys, shaking his head at Gail's comment and Cas's puzzled look. He wasn't big on shopping, but he realized this little excursion would be a way to kill the time they had to wait until their flight. And he would probably never admit this to anyone, but it would be kind of fun to see Cas trying on some different clothes for a change.

So off they went to the nearest mall. Once there, Gail sent the men on their way and she picked up a few new clothes as well. After all, it wasn't every day you could say that God bought you a new outfit. She'd have to send Bobby a Thank You card when they got back, thanking him for the gift. She smiled yet again. Thanking him for a lot of things.

\- 2 - Baccarat

Chuck left his suite in the Rio Hotel, mid-afternoon. He had bought a Gold package to the Supernatural convention there, which enabled him to attend as many events as he chose. Chuck had seen by the schedule he'd picked up at the box office that there was a writers' symposium panel at 3 p.m. He was extremely interested in this event, having of course been the original author of the Supernatural series.

He had been having a great time this past week in Vegas. It hadn't hurt that the man whose vessel he had taken over had been very well off. Once Chuck had seen the wads of cash and multiple credit cards in the man's wallet, he had decided to treat himself, and had been enjoying everything Vegas had to offer. Well, almost everything. Since Chuck had made up his mind to turn over a new leaf, he had not indulged in any pleasures of the flesh, although he had been sorely tempted. But Chuck figured he had sinned enough recently, and he didn't want to press his luck. Ever since he had decided to become a better man and to let go of all his old resentments, life had been good to Chuck, and he was sure he was now on the right path to redemption.

Gail had arranged to meet up with the guys an hour after they'd gone their separate ways, and she was sitting on a bench in the main atrium of the mall with her shopping bags at her feet, waiting.

Then she saw them walking towards her and she had to do a double-take. Cas was wearing a bright blue shirt, jeans, and a charcoal blazer, and he looked amazing. Sam and Dean were wearing the same clothes they'd arrived in, but all three men were carrying bags too, so she supposed they'd all gotten some new clothes. Good. What the hell, that's what holidays were for, right? Treating yourself, doing things you might not normally do.

She rose from the bench and walked up to Cas as he approached. "You look fantastic," she told him, reaching out to feel the fabric of his shirt. OK, looking for an excuse to touch him, really. Now that he was dressed the way he was, like a human man, she felt inexplicably shy.

"Thank you," he said, smiling, and put his arm around her waist. "I was hoping you'd approve."

The shirt matched his eyes, which were shining bright blue. He was killing her. Funny how after only a few hours of being human, Gail was suddenly so timid but Cas seemed so confident.

Cas hadn't been confident at all when he and the Winchesters had entered the store. He looked around at all the choices of clothing available and felt overwhelmed. He'd never really thought about clothes in terms of how they made him look before. He'd worn the same things day in and day out as an Angel, and this fact had never bothered him. They were just something to cover his vessel for the sake of modesty, and that was all. But now that he was human, Cas found himself wanting to look good, mostly for Gail but for himself, too. But what looked good?

Sam and Dean helped him though, and had bought a few things for themselves. Cas had insisted that they get something also; he didn't want to be the only one. He realized that didn't really make sense. What did it matter? But he was human now, and human feelings were sometimes irrational.

As he put on the clothes he'd picked, Cas had realized something: He and Gail had never been out on what humans called a "date", and this was suddenly something that he wanted very badly. Maybe they were putting the cart before the horse. Was he pushing her into a physical relationship way before the social norm? True, they had been living together for a while now, but in an almost entirely platonic way. When they'd watched the sun rise this morning and he'd kissed her the way he had, Cas had felt like he was finally free to express his love for her by being intimate, but was he making assumptions? She'd responded to him, but then she had stepped away. Cas had had no experience with this type of situation before.

So as he and Sam were waiting for Dean to make his purchases, Cas tentatively broached the subject to Sam.

"Has Gail said anything to you about...us?" Cas asked Sam.

Sam smiled. He thought he knew where this was going and, like Dean, he was amused by it.

"Like what?" Sam wasn't going to let him off that easily.

"Did she..." Cas was at a loss. He tried again, sighing. "How can you tell..." he floundered again.

Sam was grinning now. In a way, he felt bad for Cas. He knew the poor guy was like a fish out of water in this situation. But this was the most fun he and Dean had had in a while, and he couldn't help himself.

"Tell what?" Sam prompted.

Cas sighed again. He had expected something like this from the brothers, but he was under the impression that friends were supposed to help, and he was feeling a little annoyed. No. He was human now, he could say it: they were starting to piss him off.

"Come on, Sam," Cas said. "Look, I know you and Dean are having your fun at my expense, but I'm looking for some advice here. The least you can do is take me seriously. We've been friends for years and I deserve better."

Sam's smile vanished. Cas was right. "Sorry, Cas, you're right," he agreed. "What do you want to know?"

Now that Cas had been able to stand up for himself, he found that the words came easier. "How can you tell when a woman is ready for a physical relationship?"

So there it was. Sam had suspected as much. He smiled again, but this time it was a genuine smile, not a mocking one. He now felt empathy for Cas. What man hadn't wondered that at one time or another?

"She'll tell you," Sam replied honestly. Cas looked puzzled at that, so Sam elaborated, "Maybe not in so many words; in fact, usually not. But it'll be pretty obvious. Just in the way that she looks at you and responds to what you're doing."

That was about all Sam could say without starting to grin again. It was kind of weird having this conversation at all with Cas.

But Cas looked thoughtful then and nodded, as if having another conversation in his head. Human or not, he was still Cas, Sam thought. Cas clapped him on the shoulder then, in an eerie imitation of Dean, and smiled. And that had seemed to be enough.

When Cas had seen Gail looking at him with that shine in her eyes, complimenting him on how he looked, he was fairly confident that this was her way of telling him how she felt, as Sam had said.

So he put his arm around her waist and kissed her gently on the lips, and she smiled up at him.

Sam cleared his throat and Dean quipped, "I guess we should have worn our new clothes out of the store, too."

Gail punched him on the arm and said, "Shut up, Dean," but she was laughing.

They left the mall and headed back home to pack for their trip.

Metatron was still in Las Vegas, and he had seen the ads for the Supernatural convention at the Rio Hotel. He remembered having seen mention of these when he'd first come to Earth after having escaped from Angel prison. At the time, he had dismissed it from his mind as not worth his time, but now he was curious.

He had upgraded his vessel since having occupied the homeless man, and now he was inhabiting a bookish-looking, nondescript man who looked to be in his late 30s. It was the perfect vessel for Metatron. He would blend into any crowd, and there was nothing at all remarkable about his appearance. The perfect cover.

He'd decided early in the week to make his way to the Rio and check out the convention, and had bought a general admission ticket. His vessel had money in his wallet and a few credit cards and, though not as well-heeled as Chuck, Metatron had done just fine so far.

He had not yet made up his mind whether he was going to remain in Las Vegas or not. He thought not; he had been looking for an Angel to kill, and Angels were definitely in short supply in this town. Metatron hadn't minded keeping a low profile for a few days and regrouping after his time of torment in Hell, but he was getting eager to get his Grace and his powers back. He would attend the convention out of curiousity, then leave town after it was over.

He'd noticed that there was a writers' symposium at the convention this afternoon, and that session appealed to the writer in him. Also, Metatron was not stupid; he knew that if Chuck was still in town and had heard about this, he probably wouldn't be able to resist attending. Metatron had thought that he was well rid of Chuck once they had escaped from Hell's portal and emerged here, but now he was rethinking this position. He didn't really like Chuck, never had, but Chuck might still have his uses.

But, how to recognize Chuck? They would both be occupying vessels that looked quite different from the appearances they'd previously had. Well, he'd just have to figure out something when he got there. He was Metatron; he would find a way.

Sam and Dean belted themselves in and then looked over across the aisle at Cas and Gail. They both looked a little freaked out, Cas in particular.

The brothers smiled. This had been the most fun vacation they'd ever had, and they hadn't even gotten to their destination yet. How funny was this? Their travelling companions were two Angels who were afraid of flying.

Actually, Gail wasn't really afraid of flying, per se, she'd just never done it before. She and Frank had never had the occasion, nor the money. As usual, she felt a pang when thinking of her brother, but Gail shook it off. She was about to embark on a vacation with her three favourite men and she didn't want to start it off in a gloomy mood. She would put her unresolved feelings about Frank on the back burner until they returned.

She looked at Cas, who was looking a little afraid. He, of course, had never flown before either. The irony of an Angel being afraid to fly was not lost on him, but his human nerves were on edge. He didn't understand how a heavy apparatus such as this could stay aloft. Sam had tried to explain aerodynamics to him in the cab on the way to the airport, but Cas wasn't necessarily buying it. It wasn't that he wasn't intelligent enough to understand the concept, but as he looked around at the body of the plane, he just didn't see how it was possible. But he put his seat belt on and looked back at Gail, attempting a smile.

Gail put her hands on his arm, which was on the armrest between them. "I know, I'm a little nervous, too," she said to him. Truth be told, she thought he looked a lot more scared than nervous, but Gail wanted to spare his feelings. It was bad enough having those two dumb-asses across the aisle, grinning at their discomfort. Boy, were they gonna get it. She too got the irony of two Angels being nervous to fly, but Dean and Sam were having way too much fun at their expense and she was getting a little irritated by it. So she ignored the brothers and focused on Cas.

"As soon as we take off, we'll get a drink," she said to Cas. "That'll calm us down."

Then they took off, and although the experience was both terrifying and exhilarating at the same time, both Angels made it through by holding hands and focusing on each other.

But when the plane levelled off and they were above the clouds, Cas and Gail stared out the window in wonder. Cas in particular was mesmerized by the puffy white clouds, and the sun shining above them. And to think, humans thought this was where Angels lived. It was a wondrous sight, but he found that funny and he laughed.

Gail had her head on his shoulder, craning her neck to look at the clouds too. "What's so funny?" she said into his ear.

So he turned to look at her and told her what he'd been thinking. Gail found that amusing too, now that she'd been to Heaven and knew better.

Just then, the flight attendant arrived with the drinks they'd asked for. Cas dug into his pocket, but Gail put her hand on his arm.

"Those will be on these nice gentlemen over here," she said to the flight attendant, gesturing to Dean and Sam. She flashed them a grin and a wave.

Dean sighed. He guessed that was only fair. He gave her a mock salute and said, ""Yes, ma'am." He and Sam had ordered beers anyway. So he paid for all four drinks and once the quartet was served, Gail lifted her glass to her companions.

"Here's to a well-deserved holiday," she said. They all raised their glasses and drank. Truer words were never spoken.

Crowley was drinking, too. He had begun to drink so heavily that he passed out from time to time. While Demons did not sleep, there was something in their makeup that allowed them to doze after a bout of rigorous sex or a drinking binge, and his was, somewhat regrettably, the latter.

He was laying on the couch of his office in Hell, where he'd been spending most of his time lately, closeted away from his subjects. The rumours were starting to swirl about the King, but he was oblivious to them. He'd been feeling stranger and stranger by the day, and emotions had been bubbling up inside of him that he hadn't experienced in years. Depression, moodiness and self-loathing were all doing battle in his head.

Tonight, when he'd passed out from drink, Fergus dreamt of his mother. The dream started out as it always did, with her mocking him. Telling him he was a failure and always had been; that was why she had abandoned him as a small child and never looked back. "You're dead, you filthy whore," he muttered aloud, but she continued to taunt him unmercifully until he woke up, bathed in sweat and reaching for the bottle.

Sam and Dean threw their bags in the room and came right back out. No unpacking, no "getting settled". They were in Las Vegas, and it was time to party.

Dean pounded on the door of Cas and Gail's room down the hall. "Vegas, baby!" he yelled. "Let's go!"

Sam was bemused. He hadn't seen Dean raring to go like this in quite a while, and he was kind of glad they'd have the opportunity to blow off some steam after their recent hardships.

Gail answered the door. "Oh my God, Dean," she said, rolling her eyes but smiling. She opened the door wider to let the brothers in. "You'd think you were excited, or something!"

Cas was standing at the window, staring outside. The room had a view of the Strip, and he was gazing out at the sea of neon lights, thoroughly amazed. In the time it had taken them to get here, dark had fallen, and the multitude of lights were spellbinding. As soon as he and Gail had entered the room, she had gone over to this window and pulled the curtains open, hoping for a view like this, and they had stood together and stared at it until Dean had knocked on their door.

The four of them took the elevator down to the casino, where more amazing sights awaited. None of them had been here before, but the Winchesters and Gail had at least had the benefit of seeing this scene represented in countless movies, whereas Cas's frame of reference had been very limited. He had long been an observer of people and places, but this was almost too much. Cas was glad he was a human; if he'd been an Angel coming here, he was pretty sure he would be going into overload. There were people everywhere it seemed, people of all ages and in various states of dress. Or undress, in some cases; there were young girls in short skirts, and the cocktail waitresses were wearing the skimpiest of outfits. People were drinking and smoking and gambling, and the ambient noise of laughter, music and slot machines was pervasive.

But he was a human, at least for the weekend, and it seemed to mean a lot to Dean that the four of them have a few drinks to celebrate their arrival. Cas had been hoping to have some time alone with Gail, but he reasoned that they had lots of time left.

"Bar," Dean said succinctly, and propelled them to the first lounge he saw. So they hiked themselves up on bar stools, the three men together and Gail at the end, beside Cas. Dean ordered beer for the men and a glass of white wine for Gail, and four shots of tequila.

"Tequila? Really?" Gail said, making a face.

"No girly shots," Dean retorted. "Tonight, we drink like men."

Good Lord, Gail thought. He's really feeling his oats. Sam was smirking, and Cas was smiling, too. Gail gave up; she was outnumbered. But when the shots came and Dean toasted to the beginning of their holiday, Gail got into the spirit and downed her shot.

Yikes. She'd forgotten how much she disliked the taste of tequila. Fortunately, her wine had also arrived, so she took a big swallow just to get the taste out of her mouth.

Cas had also downed his shot in one swallow, and he coughed as the strong taste of alcohol hit his throat. Gail patted his back, more for moral support than anything else. She knew that his experience with alcohol had to be very limited, but he wanted to be one of the guys, which she thought was kind of sweet.

But two more drinks and two more shots in, she was done. Gail had hardly been a lightweight in life, but she was starting to feel like she was intruding on some major male bonding. Poor Cas; he was pretty tipsy by now, and she could see that he was only going to get worse. But she was not his mother, and she was certainly not going to act like a nagging wife. Still, she was out of here.

Gail hopped off her bar stool and went to stand between Sam and Dean. "OK, I'm gonna go play a slot machine or something," she said to them.

"You're leaving?" Sam asked.

"Yeah," she responded. "You guys need some 'bro time', I think." Then she turned to Dean and said, "Show him a good time, but please bring him back in one piece." There was more that she wanted to say, but they were grown men and presumably, Dean would be a good enough friend to make sure that Cas didn't get into any trouble.

Then she walked back over to Cas and smiled at him. "I'm setting you free," she said to him. He looked puzzled at that, so she continued, "Go have fun with Sam and Dean. Enjoy some 'guy time'. I'm going to go play a machine or some blackjack and I'll see you later, OK?"

He was looking at her with a strange expression on his face, a mixture of happy and sad, it looked like. "Why are you leaving?" Cas said. "Have I done something wrong?"

Crap. She'd have to remember he was human, and he'd been drinking. Castiel probably wouldn't have been fazed, but this was Cas.

So she kissed him on the cheek and said, "Not at all. I just want you to have some fun with these guys. Three human men, out on the town." Then, because his expression remained unchanged, Gail leaned forward and said into his ear, "We'll have our alone time tomorrow."

He smiled then, and she smiled back, thinking: If your hangover hasn't killed you, that is. She wanted to warn him about the consequences of drinking too much, but stopped herself. He'd wanted to be a human in Las Vegas; he'd just have to find out for himself. She wasn't being heartless, but Gail knew the male ego was a fragile thing. It had been decided a long time ago by whoever was in charge of these things that the adage was true: Boys will be boys, and she needed to let him be one tonight.

"I'll see you later," Gail said to Cas, grabbing her purse and turning away before she changed her mind. She stopped in front of Sam and Dean for a moment, debating another plea not to pour too much alcohol down Cas's throat, but Dean was ordering another round and she gave up, leaving the bar.

Bobby couldn't resist having a peek at the four of them on vacation, and he was watching them now. He saw Gail leave the bar and smiled inwardly, remembering his earlier thoughts about women being more sensible than men in these situations. It would seem that Gail was proving him right. As the three men left the Rio and went bar-hopping up and down the Strip, Bobby shook his head in amusement. Maybe he should try to arrange an extra weeks' recovery time. Maybe a month, in Cas's case.

Curious, he watched Gail as she meandered her way through the casino. It looked as though her walk had a purpose. Where was she going?

Gail had her convention ticket in her purse and she wanted to check out the venue. As she had suspected, the activities had shut down for the day, but she picked up the brochure outside the box office and examined it curiously. As the newcomer to the group, Gail had the least knowledge of Chuck and his writings, which had apparently given birth to this whole thing. Perhaps that was why she found herself here, a place she knew the men wished to avoid. Why had Bobby wanted them to come here?

Aside from that brief glance at each other in God's office, Gail had never met Chuck, didn't know him personally. She knew now, of course, that he had conspired with Metatron to have them killed, and that God had cast him down into Hell as a result. Yet these conventions were a solely human experience as far as she could discern. The dichotomy was puzzling to her.

So she took the brochure with her to another, quieter bar in the hotel and ordered a glass of wine, sipping at it as she perused the brochure, puzzling over what it could mean. Funny that she and Castiel had never stumbled upon the show in his many nights of channel-surfing. She was amused at the idea of a series of books and now a hit TV show based on Sam and Dean's lives, but she was also troubled that the original source was Chuck, a former Angel who seemed to be on the same level of evil as Metatron. Gail was long used to being able to reason things out, and she felt frustrated at her inability to connect the dots in this instance.

A man sat down on the bar stool next to Gail then, and she heard him order a beer. Then he glanced at her and said, "Are you a fan?"

What? She'd been lost in thought and didn't know what he was talking about. She looked at the man. He was a pleasant-looking guy with a sandy-coloured beard, and he was gesturing at the brochure she was holding.

Oh. She didn't really know what to say to that, but she found herself smiling. "Yeah, kinda." Well, she WAS a fan of the heroes of the story, she thought, the blue-eyed one, in particular. This thought amused her, too. Maybe she'd better lay off the drinking for a while. Then again, it was her holiday, too.

The man beside her smiled and put out his hand. "So am I. David," he said, introducing himself. Phew. He'd almost forgotten his vessel's name and said "Chuck" instead.

Gail regarded his hand for a moment, but she didn't want to be rude, so she shook it briefly but did not say her name.

"I was at the writers' symposium this afternoon," the man continued. "I'm a writer myself, so I found it really interesting how they come up with those wild storylines."

Now she was really at a loss, never having read any of the books or seen the TV show. But Gail smiled to herself; if this guy only knew. Wild didn't even begin to cover it.

But him having said he was a writer created a bit of a tickle in Gail's brain and she looked at him again. In that moment, he seemed a little familiar to her, like she had seen him or met him somewhere before.

Chuck had that tickle too, but he misunderstood her look and asked Gail if he could buy her a drink.

Oh, geez, was he trying to pick her up? Gail was a tiny bit flattered if he was, but she wasn't going to go there. She was spoken for; even if her intended was running loose somewhere in Vegas tarnishing his halo, doing "Bobby" only knew what. She smiled inwardly at that thought, too. She drained the rest of her wine and figured she'd better bail. Suddenly she didn't want to be sitting here with this man.

So Gail got off her bar stool then and told him, "I'm sorry, but I have to go. I'm meeting someone. Have a good night."

As she walked away, Chuck shrugged. You couldn't win them all. The old him would have been stung by the rejection, and maybe just resentful enough to remember where he'd seen her before, and in whose company. She HAD looked familiar to him, though for the life of him he couldn't think why. He ordered another drink and started to think about the writers' symposium earlier this afternoon, forgetting all about the woman.

Metatron approached the same bar just then, missing Gail by mere moments. He would have recognized her instantly, of course; you did not tend to forget the face of your own killer. Not that she would have had any idea who he was. He wore a different vessel now, giving him a distinct advantage.

He looked at the bar area and saw a man with a sandy-coloured beard talking to the bartender about the writers' symposium he had attended this afternoon. Metatron did a double-take. Chuck?

Metatron walked up to the bar and sat on the same stool Gail had vacated moments earlier. He ordered a glass of red wine, studying the man with the beard. He saw now that this man didn't look exactly like Chuck, but the resemblance was still uncanny enough to be unsettling. And he had been talking about the Supernatural convention. Was it just an amazing coincidence? Metatron thought not, but he engaged the man in conversation, sussing him out.

He introduced himself as Ethan, the name on his vessel's drivers' license, and his barmate introduced himself as David. They made small talk about Vegas and the weather, and shared their thoughts about the symposium they had both attended earlier this afternoon. Metatron hadn't seen this guy there, but he'd been sitting near the back of the room and there had been quite a crowd up front.

Just the way this "David" was talking about the material made Metatron think this might possibly be Chuck. Possessively, lovingly, almost. Speaking to the characters' motivations from an author's point of view. By the time Metatron finished his drink, he was mostly convinced. Should he show his hand, or not? Well, this was Las Vegas, after all; might as well gamble.

So "Ethan" looked at "David" and said: "Shame about poor Aurielle, though."

Bobby had not seen any of this, which was most unfortunate. In fact, he had not even seen Gail's brief encounter with Chuck at the bar. Just as he had been admiring Gail's attempt to investigate the convention, Bobby received a phone call.

It was Xavier, requesting a private meeting. He'd spoken with a modicum of respect, but Bobby could sense the hostility and condescension just underneath Xavier's careful tone. He sighed inwardly. He'd had a feeling this might be coming, but Bobby had hoped it might be later rather than sooner. He'd barely had time to put his ass in the chair of the High Office and already the hardliners were gunning for him. Well, it was best to face these things head on in his experience, and Bobby had never shied away from a fight.

Xavier entered Bobby's office carrying a scroll of some sort and after a polite but cool greeting, he sat in one of the chairs opposite Bobby's desk.

Xavier didn't speak, just sat there regarding him. Bobby sighed inwardly again.

"Why are you here?" he asked Xavier bluntly.

Xavier responded in kind. "The Upper Echelon have had a meeting and we've decided to resist your appointment to the High Office."

Bobby's eyebrows raised. This guy didn't screw around, did he? Under other circumstances Bobby would have approved of his style. But Bobby was not going to be intimidated.

"So, the entire Upper Echelon met, did they?" Bobby asked Xavier, hoping to throw him off balance.

His gambit worked for a moment. "All but Castiel," Xavier replied. He had not attempted to contact Castiel for the meeting, of course. But Bobby was now God; was he aware of this fact? And how would Xavier explain the deliberate oversight?

Bobby was new to the job and to Heaven's politics, so he had just been attempting to needle Xavier. He knew full well that Castiel would be unreachable, as he was currently in Las Vegas and currently human. So he let Xavier off the hook. "Never mind," Bobby said, "I know Castiel is currently off the grid. So, the six of you decided, did you?"

Xavier opened the scroll and set it on Bobby's desk. "This is a petition signed by all of us, requesting your resignation."

Bobby was equal parts angry and amused. "So, six out of seven of you want me to step down," he stated in a calm voice.

"Yes," Xavier replied shortly.

"Well, too bad you're outvoted," Bobby said almost cheerfully.

Xavier was puzzled. Was Bobby intimating that Castiel's vote was worth more than his own, or that of any of his colleagues'? Of course he knew that Castiel would stand behind Bobby, but six out of seven was a majority anywhere.

Bobby leaned forward in his chair, staring down Xavier. Time to let this dick know who was running the show around here. "God Himself offered me this job and I accepted it. Then He retired. So I am now God, and you and your buddies had better get on board or you can get the hell out."

He relished the shocked look on Xavier's face, but Bobby wished he hadn't had to be so blunt. But you could tell that this guy wasn't going to be someone you could work with. He had a yardstick up his butt and a self-righteous attitude, and clearly he'd already made up his mind about Bobby even before giving him a chance to show he could do the job. Dollars to doughnuts Xavier had wanted the job himself and had converted his disappointment at not getting it to this "petition". Like a piece of paper was going to make a difference.

Xavier stood abruptly from his chair, glaring at Bobby. "You'll be hearing from us," he said huffily, then turned on his heel and left the office.

What the hell did that mean? Bobby wondered, staring after him. How worried should he be about this? He was God, what could they possibly do to him? But he had enough challenges just trying to learn the job on the fly and keep all the plates spinning that God had put into motion before He'd left. And now this...what, exactly? Insubordination? Surely not rebellion? Balls.

After leaving the bar, Gail tried her hand at blackjack for a bit; then, about $100 up, sat at a slot machine and promptly lost half of it back. Her heart wasn't really in it, though. Everywhere she looked, there were groups of people laughing, having fun together, and here she was, alone. While she'd always been OK on her own, Gail had to admit she was missing the guys. She should have just stayed with them and risked the killer hangover in the morning.

So she cashed out and went upstairs, hoping that they wouldn't be back too late. She laid down on one of the beds and put on the TV, and promptly fell asleep.

A short while later, there was a knock at the door, waking her. Gail sat up and she saw the door open a crack.

"Gail, you there? Are you decent?" Sam's voice.

Was she? She looked down at herself for a moment, disoriented from having dozed off after being out of the practice of sleeping for so long. She was still fully dressed; the TV and the long day had lulled her to dreamland before she'd even thought of undressing for bed.

"Yeah, Sam, come on in," she called, hopping off the bed.

In came Sam and Dean, with Castiel propped up between them. She could see that all three of them were the worse for wear, goofy grins on their faces. Gail smiled. She was glad that they'd had fun; hopefully tonight's fun had been worth the way they'd be feeling in the morning.

Sam and Dean deposited Cas on the nearest bed. He mumbled something no one could understand and promptly passed out.

Gail alternated between being amused and feeling sorry for him. She decided on a bit of both. Well, at least he could sleep it off now. She'd help him deal with the consequences tomorrow.

Dean and Sam were still grinning, swaying on their feet slightly. "He kept up like a champ," Dean said to Gail, and Sam added, "Until that last club," looking at Dean.

Dean's smile vanished. "Yeah. Sorry about that, Gail," he said inexplicably.

She was puzzled. What did he mean by that? What was he apologizing to her for? Then she remembered where they were. Oh, no...

"Sorry about what, Dean?" she asked him, suspicious.

But he had sat down on the other bed, and a moment later, Dean passed out, too.

Sam grinned at his brother. "Lightweight," he quipped. "Mind giving me a hand here?" he asked Gail, attempting to rouse Dean. But Dean was down for the count.

"Never mind," Gail said, sighing. "If it's OK, I'll just sleep in your room tonight. I know a losing battle when I see one."

Without waiting for Sam's answer, Gail went to the bathroom to get her toothbrush and threw her nightshirt and a change of clothes into her overnight bag. Luckily, she'd thought to buy modest sleeping attire, as she was clearly not going to be sleeping in the same room as her man of choice tonight.

On cue, Cas began to snore, and a moment later, so did Dean. Gail shook her head and rolled her eyes, and she and Sam started to laugh.

"Come on," Sam said, beckoning her to the door. "Let's leave these sleeping beauties in peace."

Once in Sam and Dean's room, Gail looked at Sam curiously. "How is it you're not as drunk as those two?" she asked him.

Sam grinned. "Well, I'm not exactly sober, either," he replied. "But I had something to eat in one of the places we went to, and they didn't. And I snuck in a few glasses of water, too, so I won't be as dehydrated in the morning."

"You always were the smartest one," she quipped. "Well, I'm just gonna - " she gestured to the bathroom and he nodded. "Sure, go ahead."

After Gail brushed her teeth, put on her nightshirt and had a pee, she came back out to the room, expecting Sam to be passed out as well. But he was sitting up in bed with the remote for the TV in his hand. She got into the other bed and under the covers. She'd missed a lot of things about being a human sometimes, but peeing was not going to be one of them, Gail thought. She'd almost forgotten what a pain in the butt that was. She'd have to remember to joke with Cas about that. Well, that was assuming he'd survive the night, of course. Which reminded her...

"Want to watch some TV?" Sam asked her.

"It's up to you," she answered him. "But can I ask you something first?"

"Sure, Gail," Sam said, putting the remote down. He had a pretty good idea what she wanted to know. He'd known he was going to end up telling her anyway. Even if Cas remembered in the morning, he'd likely be too ashamed, and Sam had the irrational feeling that Dean had passed out on purpose, just to avoid his responsibility for the whole thing.

Sure enough, Gail said, "What WAS that last club you went to? And why did Dean apologize to me?"

Sighing, Sam swung his legs off the bed and faced her. "You've gotta understand, Gail, we were all pretty drunk by then - "

Funny, Sam had just said he wasn't that drunk. Her eyes narrowed a bit but she let him continue.

"It was Dean's idea, and we just kind of went along..." Sam floundered.

Gail was starting to get alarmed. This was Las Vegas, after all, and she was all too aware that certain types of establishments were legal here that were not in many other places. No, they couldn't have. Could they?

"It was a bad idea," Sam said, stalling. Didn't he realize he was just making it worse? She wished he would just spit it out already; then she'd have to decide just how much forgiveness was in order, if any.

"What kind of place was it, Sam?" Gail asked again, steeling herself for the answer. "Just tell me, already!"

He hung his head and said, "We took Cas to a strip club."

A strip club! Gail almost laughed with relief. If only he knew what she'd actually been thinking. Although she felt a bit weird about it, likely quite irrationally, this, she could deal with. Probably.

"It was Dean's idea, but I should have said no," Sam continued. Then, in a rush: "But nothing happened, Gail, I swear. Dean got a lap dance, and he tried to get Cas one. But Cas refused, and he got mad at Dean for bringing him there once he realized what kind of place it was, and then Cas said he was leaving. Dean didn't want to go, but Cas said he was going to punch Dean out if we didn't come back here immediately, so we did."

He looked up at Gail then, and the expression on Sam's face reminded her of that of a child who'd just been caught red-handed with his hand in the cookie jar.

Gail couldn't help but laugh then, both at the look on Sam's face and at the relief she felt. She should have known better. Cas may be a human right now, but he was still himself, and she ought to have known that drunk or not, he wouldn't consider doing anything like what she'd been briefly thinking.

Sam smiled tentatively, relieved that Gail didn't seem to be upset by what he'd told her.

"So other than that, you guys had a good time, I trust?" Gail asked him.

His face brightened. "Yeah, we actually did. We talked over old times, and we laughed a lot. Cas has a pretty good sense of humour. I never realized that before."

Gail smiled at that. "He actually does," she agreed. "He just has to come out of his shell to show it. And I guess he really did tonight! We'll have to help him deal with the consequences in the morning, though."

Sam winced. "Yeah, it won't be pretty."

"Dean can suffer, though," Gail smirked.

They shared a laugh, then Sam said, "Let's just go to sleep." He put the remote on the nightstand.

"Sounds good to me," Gail agreed. She'd been looking forward to sleeping again, too. Just because you no longer had the need for sleep didn't mean you couldn't miss the wonderful feeling of getting a good night's sleep every now and then. She burrowed under the covers as Sam turned off the light and said, "Goodnight, Sam."

"Goodnight, Gail," he replied. Then, just before sleep claimed her, Sam said, "He talked about you all night."

Gail smiled in the darkness, feeling a little flutter in her stomach. "Thanks, Sam," she murmured, and then she drifted off, still smiling.

Aurielle slept too, but fitfully. As she was in Purgatory, she was neither Demon, human or Angel, but a neutral being, just trying to survive. Purgatory was a brutal place, she had discovered. In a way, it was worse than Hell, filled with monsters who seemed to exist for no other purpose than to tear you limb from limb. It was lucky she had been trained how to fight in Heaven, or she never would have made it this long.

She was dreaming about Castiel, as she always did. About the two of them together, laughing and talking, holding hands. Aurielle knew that he didn't actually love her and he never would, but this fantasy was the only thing that she had to cling to, to sustain her in this horrible place.

Aurielle knew that she had been tricked and lied to by Chuck and Metatron, manipulated into torturing and almost killing the Angel Gail. She also knew now that Gail had not been plotting against Castiel; it had all been a story concocted and spoon-fed to Aurielle to give her the motivation she'd needed to kill Gail. She'd been all too happy to believe the lie, wanting there to be a good reason, an excuse to get Gail out of the way so Aurielle could attempt to win Castiel for herself. But she now had to accept that at the very least, Castiel and Gail were fulfilling their mission on Earth together as partners, though in what sense Aurielle still didn't know. Gail must be in love with him; after all, what girl wouldn't be? But how did Castiel feel about Gail? Could there be a chance for Aurielle still?

But then she remembered the look on Castiel's face when he'd seen Gail in danger, and the hatred and anger in his eyes for Aurielle as he'd stabbed her to death. Those had told her pretty much all she needed to know.

Still, Aurielle retreated into her fantasy world as a means to cope with the nearly constant horrors of Purgatory, and she was slowly starting to lose her mind.

Cas awoke in the middle of the night, dizzy and disoriented. He had to urinate, so he stumbled into the bathroom but did not turn on the light. Like Gail, he would definitely not miss this aspect of being a human. Once he'd finished, he experienced another new sensation. His body was rebelling against all of the alcohol he'd consumed, and he was suddenly feeling very ill. For the first and thankfully only time in his existence, Cas vomited. It was a horrible thing, the worst feeling he'd ever had, but once he was done, he actually felt a little better. He should have known not to drink that much; he promised himself he would never do so again. Much like many humans in his situation had done since the invention of alcohol, he suspected, smiling wryly. He wondered if Gail had ever had this experience when she'd been a human. He'd have to remember to ask her. She'd certainly had a lot more sense than he'd had tonight.

Cas came out of the bathroom and looked over at the other bed expecting to see Gail there, but instead there was Dean, and he was snoring lightly. Cas was confused. Where was Gail?

He lay back down on his own bed, trying to remember returning here last night and found that he couldn't, not really. He remembered Gail leaving him and the brothers in the hotel bar. He had thought that she was angry with him but she'd assured him that she wasn't. Then he and Dean and Sam had gone to a few places on what Dean had called "the Strip", and they had had more drinks. Cas remembered laughing a lot, reminiscing with his friends, and talking to them about Gail and how much she meant to him. Then everything else was a blur. Now Dean was here, but Sam and Gail were not.

Cas fell back to sleep, still trying to figure it out.

In one of those weird turnarounds life sometimes has on offer, at the same time as his long-ago Brother Castiel was drunk, Crowley was stone cold sober. This was a rare condition for him since his return to Hell, but it was early in the day and he had just received some news that had momentarily paralyzed him into inaction.

Metatron had escaped from Hell? Why was he just finding out about this now?

It was his own fault. Crowley had let the files and the status reports pile up on his desk since coming back, and he'd finally decided to go through them early this morning when he could no longer stand the nightmares.

According to the report, Metatron had just simply disappeared. Crowley knew he had no powers here, so how could that be? As two of God's Originals, Crowley and Metatron had extensive knowledge of the way things worked, more than most. If anyone could have found a way, it might be Metatron, Crowley mused. But as he read more of the report, he noticed that Chuck was also missing, and so was one of the receptionists, a girl named Becky. Crowley smelled a rat; or, more to the point, a conspiracy. He did not particularly care about Chuck or the receptionist; they were a dime a dozen as far as denizens of Hell went. But he was angry about Metatron. The last time they'd met, Metatron had had the nerve to refer to Crowley as Cain, the persona he'd hidden for all these years. Metatron was not the least bit frightened or intimidated by Crowley, a fact that both infuriated and intrigued Crowley. And now he had escaped Crowley's dominion, seemingly with ease, probably laughing at the King behind his back.

Could this trio have found the portal to Earth? That had to be the logical explanation.

Crowley made his way to the portal and stood there, deep in thought. Metatron's escape could not be allowed; once word got around, there would be no stopping the amount of gossip and speculation that the King was losing his edge and could not keep control of his charges. Besides, he'd thought then and still thought now that a being as evil as Metatron might have his uses.

So Crowley stepped through the portal and into the Las Vegas alleyway where the others had come before him. He waved his hand behind him, sealing the portal. No more. If any of the other tormented souls thought they could just walk out of his domain, they were sorely mistaken. Crowley would find Metatron and make an example of him.

Garth and Bess had been integrated into the pack of Hellhounds by now, and the trainers were just waiting for word from the King before sending them to Earth to claim the unfortunate souls whose time had run out. Crowley had specifically ordered that the two Werewolves not be sent along with the pack except on his say-so, but as of yet, no such instruction had come. Maybe he was saving them for a special occasion. It wasn't for the trainers to know or to question. But the souls had been starting to pile up, so they'd begun releasing the Hellhounds back to Earth to do their job, but had held the Werewolves back. Even though there were reports that the King might be losing his grip, they were not about to disobey a direct order.

So Bess and Garth were spared for now, but they lay on the bottom of the cage, whining, fearing it would only be a matter of time until they were forced to uphold their unholy end of the deal. Even though Garth could no longer speak, he fervently prayed in his head. He did not know whether Crowley had succeeded in killing the Winchesters after all, as he'd promised Garth he was going to do on his last visit. Garth really didn't want to take a soul, and he certainly didn't want Bess to do it, either. But he couldn't see a way out of it. Soon they would be set upon humans, and their hunger would overtake them.

\- 3 - Casino Royale

Sam and Gail woke in the morning, feeling refreshed.

Sam had a slight hangover, but not too bad, really. He'd certainly had worse. But he wanted to clear his head a bit. "Mind if I use the shower first?" he asked Gail.

She shook her head. "No, go ahead," she said. "But I'll go right after you, and then I think we'd better check on the patients."

They both laughed, and Gail bounced off the bed and opened the curtains as Sam headed into the bathroom. A glorious, sunny day. She hoped Dean and especially Cas weren't feeling too terrible; she was curious to get out there and explore, and her stomach was growling.

A short while later, they opened the door to Gail and Cas's room using her keycard.

"Good morning," she sang out softly, approaching the bed where Cas lay. She could just make him out in the dim room, and she turned to Sam, meaning to ask him to turn on the lamp, figuring its light would be easier to take.

Suddenly, Sam threw open the drapes and said loudly, "Rise and shine!"

Dean and Cas moaned simultaneously, and Sam grinned. Payback for all the times that Dean had tormented him over the years and the nights Cas had kept him awake was on his mind.

"Sam, you're so mean," Gail chided, but she couldn't help but smile a bit.

Dean sat up, looking like death warmed over, holding his head. "What time is it?" he groaned.

"Time for you to get up," Sam said, pulling the covers off his brother. Gail prepared to avert her eyes, but luckily, Dean had fallen asleep fully clothed and had apparently remained that way.

She looked down at Cas, whose eyes were open but narrowed to slits. "How are you doing?" she asked him softly. He moaned again in response. She did feel compassion for him then. Gail had been there before a handful of times when she'd been a human, and she knew he must be feeling like crap.

So she kissed him gently on the forehead and said, "I have something that'll help you feel better." She went to her overnight bag, which she'd left by the door when they'd walked in, and grabbed the pill bottles she'd had the foresight to pack, got him a drink of water, and returned to his bedside.

"Come on, sit up," she urged, but still gently. "These will help with the headache and the nausea."

Gail gave Cas the pills and the glass of water, her mind flashing back to the first night they'd met and the glass of water she'd given him then. Weird how life was; here she was, trying to cure him again. But unlike the previous situation, this was not life-threatening, so she smiled again as he downed the pills and looked at her gratefully.

"Thank you," Cas said.

Dean cleared his throat. "Where's mine?" he asked her.

"You? You get nothing," she replied. "I know what you did last night." She was teasing him, of course, but a small part of her wasn't.

Dean had the good grace to flush, and he squinted up at Sam then, who was still grinning. "Thanks for selling me out, Sammy," Dean said to him.

"What are you talking about?" Cas asked. He was squinting against the bright sunlight too, and holding his hand to his head as if receiving a particularly loud call on Angel Radio.

"Did you have fun last night on the Strip?" Gail asked him in mock innocence.

"Yes, we..." he trailed off. Trying to remember.

"What did you think of that last club on the Strip, Cas?" Sam teased, putting an ever-so-slight emphasis on the operative word.

Dean groaned. "Come on, Sammy, I feel like crap already. Leave it alone, willya?" He looked at Gail, who was fighting not to smile. She wanted Dean to feel a little ashamed.

Clearly, he did. "I'm sorry, Gail," Dean said. He obviously didn't remember having said the same thing the night before, but his apology meant more to her this morning because he was sober. And it really wasn't the end of the world, considering how things had turned out.

So Gail relented. She went back to get the pill bottles and another glass of water and gave them to Dean. "Here," she said to him. He looked up at her. "It's OK, Dean," Gail said, smiling. "Really."

Cas had been deep in thought during this whole exchange, and bits and pieces of the night were starting to come back to him. When Dean apologized to Gail, Cas finally remembered the last club that Dean had dragged him to and he flushed with embarrassment. He swung his legs off the bed and grabbed Gail's hand.

She turned to look at him.

"Come here, please," Cas said to Gail, patting the bed beside him.

She sat beside him and he cleared his throat. "I'm sorry too, Gail," Cas said. "I should not have gone there."

Dean sighed. It was time for him to step up. "It was my idea," he said. "Cas didn't know what kind of place it was."

Gail looked at Sam. She didn't know if she should say that he'd told her the whole story, thinking of that male ego thing again, and not wanting to sell him out to the men. But it was time she let Cas and especially Dean off the hook. While she was not thrilled with Dean at the moment, they were all adults here and they had 3 more days left to their vacation. She didn't want them to spend it uncomfortable around each other, and she was getting a little tired of being apologized to, anyway. Who was she, the Queen of Sheba? This was getting a little ridiculous.

Sam bailed her out. "I told Gail the whole story last night, and she's OK with it. I think," he couldn't resist adding.

But Cas looked so alarmed that Gail couldn't bear to tease any more. "It's OK," she said to him, touching his cheek. He looked doubtful, so she added, "Really."

"You too, Dean," she said, turning to him. "Let's just forget all about it and go to breakfast."

Dean rose. "Mind if I shower and change first?" he asked, then tried on the first smile of the day. "You'd better do the same, Cas." He passed by Gail and touched her on the shoulder. "Gail..."

She cut him off. "If you say you're sorry again, I'm afraid I'll have to kick your ass. And you're in such sorry shape I could probably do it." But she was smiling when she said it.

"Gail and I will go down to the buffet. You guys come and join us when you"re done," Sam said then. Gail thought that sounded like a great idea. She could do with a cup of coffee or three.

"I'll see you downstairs," Gail said to Cas, kissing him on the cheek. "You'll feel better after a shower, you'll see."

Cas actually did feel better after a shower and a change of clothes, and he took an extra couple of minutes to shave as well. He had really thought that Gail was going to be angry when she found out about where he'd been last night. Not that anything had happened or would have happened, of course, but still...She'd obviously known him well enough to know that he was saving himself for her. The thought of being close to any other woman was, well, unthinkable. He was lucky she was so understanding, though; from what he'd heard, there were many women who would not have been.

But Cas resolved to be better behaved for the rest of their trip, more attentive to her. They had been here since yesterday, and Gail had spent more time alone, and with Sam, than with him. Like many other things in his life, this was not going at all like he'd hoped.

The four of them ate a big, leisurely brunch and talked about what to do that day. Dean wanted to play poker, and Sam wanted to go to the pool, or maybe the gym. "Really, Sammy?" Dean said, incredulous. "You're in Vegas! You can go to a gym anywhere."

Cas was smiling at the brothers. This was familiar ground, at least. He was feeling better now that he'd eaten breakfast and had some coffee.

Gail came back to the table then and Cas automatically rose, pulling out her chair for her. Dean opened his mouth to say something, then thought better of it. He'd gotten off pretty easily this morning and he didn't want to rile Gail up. He didn't feel the least bit ashamed of having gone with Sam to a strip club but it had been over the line to bring Cas with them under the circumstances, and he knew it now that he was sober.

Meanwhile, Sam was capitulating. Dean had a point; they were in Las Vegas, after all, and he really could go to a gym anywhere. Dean was probably still feeling a bit rough, and to force him to go out in the heat and the sun would be cruel. Sam and Dean gave each other a hard time as brothers will, but Sam was prepared to give Dean this one. Besides, he hadn't played poker in a while, and he did enjoy it from time to time.

Cas had never played poker, but now that Gail had taught him some other card games, he listened with some interest as the brothers talked about the game and the way it was played. The strategies involved and the fact that there was an aspect of insight into the other players intrigued him.

"Why don't you go with them and try it?" Gail said to Cas.

"I might," he said, "if you come with me."

She smiled. Ever since he'd come down for breakfast, Cas had been sweet and attentive to her, but she didn't want him to think she had a leash on him.

"Poker's not my game," she told him. "Maybe if I still had my psychic powers, it would be," Gail joked. "Why don't you guys go ahead, and I'll meet you at the poker room in a couple of hours?"

Sam and Dean rose from the table and Cas said to them, "You go on ahead, I'll see you there in a minute."

Once the brothers had left, Cas turned back to Gail. "Are you sure you're not angry with me?" he asked her.

"Yes, I'm sure," she answered sincerely. "You know me well enough by now to know that I don't really have a problem expressing my feelings." Gail smiled mischeviously and Cas had to smile at that too. "Why do you ask?"

"It just seems like you don't want to spend any time with me," Cas said.

Gail was dismayed. She had thought she was giving him his freedom. As Angels, they had been spending so much time together that she hadn't wanted to seem clingy now that they were humans. Now she knew how Castiel felt when he thought he was doing the right thing only to find out that others didn't see it that way.

"No, that's not true, I promise you," she reassured him. "I'll tell you what. After you've finished playing poker, we'll ditch Sam and Dean and have dinner together, just the two of us."

He perked up at this suggestion. "A date?"

Gail laughed merrily. "Yes. A date." The thought now occurred to her, as it had to Cas yesterday, that they had been living together for a while now and yet they had never really been on anything even resembling a date. For some reason, she found that really funny.

So she walked to the poker room with him, said, "I'll be back in a couple of hours," and gave him a kiss. "For luck. Win big so we can go someplace nice," she said teasingly.

Cas smiled and pulled her close, kissing her deeply. "I need lots of luck. I want to take you somewhere really fancy," he quipped.

Gail laughed as he turned and walked into the poker room. Then, when he was out of sight, she turned the other way and walked to the hall where the Supernatural convention was taking place.

She kept coming back to this place, and Gail had been feeling its pull ever since breakfast. That was one reason she'd leaped at the chance to send the men on their way. It was still bugging her that she couldn't figure out the significance of the convention to them and their lives. Aside from the obvious weird and slightly funny parallels, Gail just couldn't see it. She should probably just relax and enjoy her vacation more, and Gail promised herself she would let go of it tonight, but for now, she was determined to get to the bottom of why Bobby had sent them here, if she could.

As Gail presented her ticket and walked into the main concourse area, she was amazed at the sea of people wandering around. As she walked around from table to table looking at the exhibits and merchandise for sale, Gail was equal parts astonished and amused. There were books, calendars, T-shirts, jewellery, even models of Dean's Impala. She came upon a table that held stacks of autographed pictures of the cast of the TV show. Gail looked at the photos, her amazement growing. These were obviously the actors who played Sam, Dean and Castiel, but each man's resemblance to his real-life counterpart was eerie. She found herself touching the faces of each man represented in the photos and smiling. If these people only knew how great the real guys truly were.

Gail picked out the photo of the actor who played Castiel and examined his face. What a handsome man, she thought, almost as handsome as the real deal. She was tempted to buy it; in fact, maybe she should buy a photo of each of the three and frame them for the apartment. Or maybe she should wrap them and give them to her guys as Christmas presents. How funny would that be?

Becky saw Gail holding the picture of Castiel; well, really, the actor who played him, and she smiled. From the way the woman was looking at the photo it was obvious that she was a Cas Girl, so Becky felt safe to talk to her. Becky agreed that Cas was good-looking, but Sam was her man, always had been.

She had been enjoying the convention so far. Becky had been here constantly since the event opened, and she never grew tired of it. In the spirit of her determination to be less socially awkward, Becky had engaged in conversation with vendors and fellow fans alike, but she'd found that she couldn't really talk to the Sam Girls. That she felt jealousy every time they talked about Sam or the actor portraying him should have been strange, but as Becky knew that Sam was real, and the Sam Girls didn't, Becky felt very possessive of him. Becky had actually MET Sam Winchester; those girls didn't know the first thing about him. So she'd tried talking to the Dean Girls, hoping to form an alliance, but all they wanted to do was rhapsodize about how cute Dean was and how heroic he was, always saving his little brother. Dean Girls were so fanatical about the object of their affection that they marginalized Sam, dismissed him, and that made Becky angry. She didn't mind talking to the Cas Girls. They were also fanatical, but since their devotion was to the Winchesters' Angel friend, these girls regarded the brothers with equal affection but in a sisterly manner, posing no threat to Becky and her fantasies.

Here was clearly a Cas Girl, so Becky said, "He's great, isn't he?"

Gail turned around and looked at the young girl. "Yes, he is," she agreed, smiling widely. She couldn't help it; this was all so unreal it was becoming almost too funny.

But it was about to get even more so. "He's going to be here tomorrow," Becky said, then mentally kicked herself. This was a Cas Girl. She would know that. But Gail had not known that. She had not really paid attention to the schedule of the actors' appearances, never having watched the show.

"Really?" Gail said to the girl, who still had not introduced herself but seemed nice enough. "I think I might have to come back tomorrow, then." She could not seem to stop grinning. She'd have to drag the men kicking and screaming here, Gail was sure, but the thought of bringing Cas to see his actor counterpart was just too good to pass up. She'd have to tease him about how much better-looking the actor was. Then again, maybe she'd better not. Human Cas seemed a lot more sensitive than she'd expected, and she might hurt his feelings. She'd let the brothers do it, she thought mischeviously.

Becky was somewhat taken aback. This woman had been looking at the picture like she wanted to kiss it and she didn't even know? Then it occurred to Becky that she was probably a newbie, and might be shy, like Becky used to be.

"I'm...Helen," Becky said to Gail. She'd almost forgotten her vessel's name. She had obtained the name from the ID card in the girl's purse. Becky didn't particularly like the name, but as this was who she was supposed to be, she figured she'd better start using it. Helen was the real name of the girl who'd gone by the name of Candy once here in Vegas, but of course, Becky had no way of knowing that. Having been possessed by both Chuck, then Becky, in such a short period of time, Candy was well and truly gone.

"Gail," Gail introduced herself in return. This young girl had disarmed her enough to warrant Gail's use of her name. What was the harm? There was no mention of her in the stories, Gail knew. She had only come into the mens' lives after Chuck had finished writing the series.

"Are you coming back tomorrow?" Becky asked Gail hopefully. Maybe they could sit together. "The guy who plays Crowley will be here too."

Gail's blood ran cold. She knew this was make-believe, but the mere mention of that name was enough to snap her back into reality. The real-life Crowley was still out there, her brother Frank was in Hell, and here she was having fun in Las Vegas, going to a silly convention.

Becky saw Gail's face fall and misunderstood. "I know, he's sort of evil in the books. But he's kind of funny too, and I hear the two actors really get along in real life."

This was too much. Crowley was "sort of evil"? "Kind of funny"? Yes, she knew it was a TV show, but Gail was angry now. These people had no damn idea. Crowley was the King of Hell, the bane of her existence, and there was nothing remotely funny about him. Imagine Castiel and Crowley being here together, "getting along". It was enough to make you sick. The only show she'd like to see would be the one where Castiel ran Crowley through with his Angel blade, finishing him. She'd pay to see that show.

Gail was done talking to Helen, and she was done here. She threw the photo she'd been holding back onto the table and walked out of the convention hall, leaving a crestfallen Becky behind her.

As it was much sooner than Gail had anticipated meeting up with the men, she walked into the bar where she'd been the night before and ordered a glass of wine. She had some time to kill, and she wanted to calm her nerves.

She took a big swallow of wine when her glass arrived. What possible reason could there be, what possible benefit could arise from attending an event that would sanction a representation of Crowley as an object of amusement? People found this entertaining? They should walk a mile in her shoes, go through what she'd gone through in the past year. See if they found THAT fun.

Gail really needed to calm down. They were still on holidays, after all, and she'd been looking forward to a nice evening with Cas before she'd gone to that damn convention. She supposed she'd have to talk to the men about it, seeing as they'd been requested to go there together at some point, but for now, she'd better let it go.

So she ordered another glass of wine and drank it too, simmering down, and when she finally felt a bit calmer, Gail left the bar and made her way to the poker room.

Dean and Sam met at the cashier's cage.

"How'd you do?" Sam asked his brother. The three of them had decided to play at separate tables, not wanting to play against each other.

Dean gave him a rueful look. "Not my day. About a hundred bucks down. You?"

"A hundred and fifty up," Sam replied, smiling. Not exactly a fortune between them, but at least they were ahead. He was frankly a bit happy that he'd done better than Dean. At least that was one thing his brother couldn't taunt him about.

After they'd cashed out their chips, the brothers looked around for Cas. Sam had seen him a couple of tables over earlier, but he was no longer there. Where had he gone?

The poker room was large and they weaved through the tables, looking for him. No Cas. The brothers exchanged glances. What the hell?

Sam noticed a smaller room off to the side, with glass entry doors. He realized this was the High Limit room. He peered inside, just on the off chance. "Dean," he said.

"What?" Dean said, approaching where Sam was standing.

Sam pointed into the room. "Look," he said to Dean.

Dean looked. Cas was sitting at one of the tables in the High Limit room, stacks of chips in front of him.

The brothers grinned at each other. "Why am I not surprised?" Sam said.

Dean pushed open the door and they walked inside and up to the table. There was a hand in progress so they stood quietly, watching the action.

Everyone at the table had dropped out of the hand except for Cas and a young guy wearing sunglasses. What a douchebag, Dean thought. He hated guys who wore shades indoors. He knew a lot of guys did so in poker rooms, thinking that hiding their eyes gave them an edge, but this guy just looked like a moron.

He appeared to be trying to stare Cas down, but Cas was looking at the young man calmly. "Raise $500," Cas said, pushing in some chips.

Dean and Sam looked at each other, impressed. The flop looked fairly unimpressive so far, though. They hoped he knew what he was doing.

The young guy saw Cas's bet, then the other two cards came and after 2 more raises from Cas, his opponent smirked and said, "All in." He pushed the remainder of his chips, a considerable amount, into the centre and sat back in his chair. "You've got nothing," the man sneered at Cas, "and we both know it."

Sam and Dean were worried now. The cards on the table were a mixed bag and they knew that Cas had never played poker before. They REALLY hoped he knew what he was doing.

Cas stared evenly at his opponent. "No," he said. "It's you that has nothing." He met the bet, and the brothers held their breath.

"Flush," the young guy said, turning his two cards over and smiling.

But Cas was smiling too, and he turned his cards over to reveal an Ace-high flush.

His opponent stared at Cas's cards, then at Cas's smiling face. He got to his feet and swore, calling Cas a name that definitely would not be Angel-approved.

Cas stared him down, not smiling now but not reacting either, until his opponent lunged across the table and grabbed him by the shirt. Dean made a move towards Cas's opponent then, but Sam grabbed him, holding him back. "Let him handle it, Dean," Sam said softly.

And Cas did not disappoint. He stood up slowly, looking at his opponent, then at the hand clutching his shirt. "Let go of the shirt. It's new," Cas said calmly.

Sam smiled at this. He felt a touch on his arm and looked at Dean, but it was Gail, who had just entered the room. She looked at Sam inquiringly. What the hell is going on here? she asked him non-verbally. He gave his head a slight shake. Gail noticed Dean's hands curling into fists but he was standing down for the moment.

The young man did let go of Cas's shirt, but he moved around the table to face Cas as the other players moved away. "You son of a bitch," he snarled into Cas's face.

Still, Cas did not react; even when his opponent gave him a shove with both hands, Cas just kept looking at him. "I would strongly advise against doing that again," Cas said, sounding more like his Angel self than the human he was now. He was angry, but Cas had seen Gail standing beside Sam and he did not want her to see him get into a fight if it could be avoided. He had behaved badly enough last night as it was.

But of course, Cas's restraint only served to infuriate the young man more. Gail didn't like where this seemed to be headed, so she said, "Come on, Cas, let's go," and she took half a step forward.

Cas's opponent looked at her and said, "That your girlfriend?" He sneered at Cas and called Gail a name then, one of the worst things you could call a woman, making Dean wince. Poor guy, he thought. This was not going to be pretty.

Cas punched the man, sending him flying across the table, chips and cards falling everywhere.

Two security guards from the casino flew into the room then, ready to intercede, but Cas was done. He had made his point, and his opponent was still laying on the floor.

"Let's go," he said to Gail and the brothers, his smile returning. "Sam, Dean, do you want to give me a hand here?" Cas grabbed several racks of chips and gestured to a table beside where he'd been sitting, where there were more racks full of chips, stacked on top of each other.

"Those are all yours?" Dean asked, astonished.

"Yes," Cas replied, continuing to smile, "plus a few on the floor. I think I'll just leave those, though. If that dick wants them so badly, he can have them." He gestured to his opponent, who was slowly getting up from the floor, holding his face. The security guards were standing by, but the fight seemed to have gone out of him and he just stood there, glaring at Cas.

Dean had never been happier. He and Sam both laughed and went to grab the racks of chips. The three men walked to the cash cage, Gail holding the door open for them. She smiled at each of her guys as they passed through the door, then followed them to the cash cage.

Once relieved of his chips, Cas took her hands in his. "I'm sorry about that," he said to Gail. "I just couldn't help it."

She was smiling. "I'm surprised you didn't do it sooner," she replied. "I probably would have."

He smiled in return. "I was trying not to stoop to his level," he responded. "But when he called you that word..." his smile vanished.

Gail knew it was girlish, being so pleased that he had defended her honour that way. So cliche, so old-school. But Castiel was an old-school kind of guy; after all, he had been around since the beginning of time. So she threw her arms around him and kissed him on the cheek.

The cashier said, "Sir. Sir? I have your total."

Cas turned back to the cage. Sam and Dean had retreated discreetly, letting Cas and Gail have their moment, but they approached the cage now. They really wanted to hear this.

The cashier started to count out the money for Cas, and the Winchesters' eyes widened as she got into the thousands and kept going. She counted out $8,000 and pushed the money through.

They all stared disbelievingly at the wad of cash in Cas's hand. He couldn't quite believe it himself. He had wondered about the game, to be sure, but once he'd gotten the hang of it, Cas had actually found it fun. And easy, too. Much as he'd enjoyed the cerebral aspect of a game of chess in the past, Cas thought poker could be the modern equivalent. He'd enjoyed the strategy involved and the sizing up of your opponents. As a quiet and thoughtful man in life, and a keen observer of humans as an Angel, Cas had used those skills to their full advantage.

"I've gotta say, Cas, I don't think I've ever been more impressed by you than I am right now," Dean said, eyeing the stack of bills.

"But your hand is bleeding," Gail said. "We should get some ice on that."

"Drinks are on you," Dean said. Cas looked at him. "Just one," Dean wheedled. "We've got to celebrate."

"Dean's right," Gail agreed. "We'll go for one drink, and we'll get the bartender to fix you up."

So Cas relented, and they all got a drink at the bar. The bartender provided him with an ice bucket, and Cas plunged his hand into it, wincing. That really did hurt. He didn't know how guys did it in the movies. This thought made him smile. He was glad he'd clocked the guy; he'd do it again all day long, especially after what he'd said about Gail. But he'd best not forget how fragile humans were. Good thing he hadn't had his Angel blade with him, though. Along with the fragility of the human body came a wealth of complex human emotions, and he was finding it much harder to keep them in check now that he was a human himself.

Speaking of which...Cas couldn't stop looking at Gail. She had been putting up with an awful lot from him over the past couple of days, yet he thought she'd never looked happier. Women were definitely a mystery to him, always had been, but he had had his fun with the Winchesters and was now ready to focus solely on Gail. What did she want? What did she need?

He leaned forward and spoke softly in her ear. "I think we can afford to go to a really nice place for dinner now."

She laughed. "No kidding."

But then Cas frowned as something occurred to him. "There's only one thing I'm concerned about. I understand that a really nice restaurant requires a higher code of dress, and I didn't bring anything like that. Did you?"

Right. She hadn't, either. "No," she said. "It never occurred to me."

Cas thought about this for a moment.

"Hey! You guys!" Sam said. "We're supposed to be celebrating here," he said, raising his glass.

"Yeah," Dean chimed in. "What are you talking about so seriously over there?"

Cas and Gail exchanged smiles. Cas had had an idea, so it was he that spoke. "We need to go clothes shopping," he told the brothers.

Dean groaned. Not again. That's what he got for bringing a woman to Vegas, he thought. "Come on, Cas," he pleaded.

"Don't you want us to look nice for our first official date?" Gail teased Dean, entwining her fingers in Cas's.

Dean fixed her with a baleful glare. Why the hell should he care? But Sam sighed and said, "Maybe we kind of owe them this one, Dean."

OK, maybe they kind of did, Dean thought, relenting. Poor Cas still hadn't gotten any since they'd been here, and that was sort of Dean's fault. And he kind of owed Gail one after the stunt he'd pulled last night. So he decided to suck it up.

"All right, Cas, let's go," Dean sighed, rising from his bar stool.

"Nope," Gail said, surprising him. "Sam will go with Cas. You're coming with me," she smiled.

Dean rolled his eyes. He should have figured she was going to get her revenge. Shopping for womens' clothes. How low he had sunk.

There was a method to Gail's madness. Maybe a slight bit of revenge was involved, but mainly, she had picked Dean because she wanted to talk to him about Cas. And, because she thought that Dean might have a good eye for what looked sexy but not trashy. The trick would be getting him to admit it.

So she proceeded slowly, making small talk as she looked at various outfits and Dean stood by, waiting as patiently as he could.

Selecting a few outfits to try on, Gail glanced around to make sure they weren't being overheard and took the plunge.

"Has Cas said anything to you about - " how to put this delicately - "any...expectations he might have?" she asked Dean, looking at the clothes but not at him.

Really? Dean thought. She wanted to have this conversation with him? Wouldn't Sam be better?

"I don't really know how to answer that," he said uncomfortably.

Gail did look at him then. "Look, I know this kind of thing isn't your forte," she said. "But you know him the best, and I really need some guidance here." She smiled and held an outfit up in front of her. "How sexy should I be going for here?" Dean began to smile then, and she knew she had him. She tried a second outfit. Dean looked around the store then, combing through the racks, and took a couple of things, handing them to her. "Try these," he said, smiling despite himself.

"Thanks, Dean," she said gratefully, and walked to the change room as he had a seat outside. He didn't know what Gail was worried about; she could come out in a potato sack and Cas's eyes would still light up once he saw her. The guy had it bad. But it wasn't Dean's place to tell her that; he was sure she'd find out soon enough. He actually did want the two of them to be happy. They'd had enough problems and hard times. He and Sam loved their Angel friends, and Dean in particular had been giving them a hard time this last couple of days, but he was actually a little jealous. He couldn't remember the last time he'd had even a whiff of a relationship with a woman. Dean put on a facade, but a good part of him would like to have had even half of what Cas and Gail had.

He sighed, waiting for Gail to come out of the change room. And when she did, he gave her the thumbs-up. She looked great. Cas was a lucky guy. Or would be soon, Dean told himself, smiling.

Cas and Sam had finished their shopping, and Sam called Dean on his cell phone to let him know.

"Yeah, we're finished, too," Dean said over the phone. He lowered his voice out of habit, looking at Gail over at the cash register. "Thank God," Dean added, making Sam laugh. Gail didn't look Dean's way and he reminded himself that she didn't have the Angel radar right now. Phew.

They arranged to meet in the hotel lobby and when they were all together, Cas said, "Hold on."

He went to the front desk to inquire about the best restaurant the hotel had, and the clerk made a reservation for him. Then he came back to where the others stood, waiting.

"I'll change in your room," he said to Sam and Dean, then turned to Gail, smiling. "I'll pick you up in an hour," he said to her.

"Okay," she said, almost shyly.

Nearly an hour later, Cas was dressed in a suit and tie and pressing some of his winnings into Dean's hand.

"Take it, Dean," Cas insisted. "Please."

Dean had already refused twice, but now he relented.

"I want you and Sam to go out, have fun," Cas said to them. "I have more than I need."

Once an Angel, always an Angel, Sam thought. But he appreciated their friend's generosity and the brothers knew he was coming from a good place.

So Dean took the money and thanked him, and the three men left the room. They separated at the elevator.

"Have a good night," Sam said to Cas. He decided to refrain from teasing his friend for a change, but gave him a wink.

Cas looked at Dean expectantly, but Dean surprised him by merely saying, "Yeah, you two kids have fun. And give our best to Gail."

"We'll see you in the morning," Sam said.

Then an elevator came and the brothers were gone.

They had actually gone easy on him, Cas thought. He had expected a barrage of ribbing and had been prepared for it. Perhaps they'd known that enough was enough. But he preferred to think that it was because they cared about him and Gail, and were glad that their friends were happy.

He was going with that.

Cas knocked on the door of their room and Gail answered.

"You look beautiful," he said to her.

She smiled. She had picked the outfit that Dean had liked the best, and she thought it looked good on her without being too overtly sexy.

But Cas? He looked amazing, and she told him so.

He was pleased. Now that he was getting the hang of it, he thought that putting on different clothes was kind of fun. He felt confident in a suit and tie.

Gail closed the door behind her and Cas took her hand. "Ready to go?" he said to her, smiling.

She smiled back and squeezed his hand briefly. "Very ready," she said.

They had a glass of wine each, then a leisurely dinner and some more wine. Gail had been a little shocked at the prices on the menu, but she remembered Cas's winnings and thought: Well, you're only human once.

This thought made her giggle, and she shared it with Cas, who laughed. That was certainly true, at least in their case. They had a secluded table, so they'd been free to talk about how weird and wonderful it had been to be human over the past couple of days. They'd both enjoyed the sensations of eating and sleeping, and were enjoying the wine, though Cas was pacing himself, remembering his excesses of the night before and not looking for a repeat. Moderation was the key, he thought. He felt pleasantly relaxed.

So did Gail. She had begun to feel a little shy again when they'd first entered the restaurant. This place was a little high-end for her, and she felt almost like a little girl playing dress-up. Give her jeans and a burger any day, she had thought. But she knew it was important to Cas. He'd wanted them to go out on a date and had likely been under the cliched impression that he had to impress her by taking her someplace fancy. So she'd go with it just this once, but if and when the subject ever came up again, she'd have to let him know that she didn't need it. All she needed was to be with him.

They also talked about the events of the past year, but in unspoken agreement, only focused on the positives. They had been through a lot together, and a lot of it had been rough, but they had also grown close as a result. Much closer than any couple would have been on their first date, Gail joked, and Cas tended to agree. He in turn pointed out the inherent irony of a couple who had lived together for as long as they had only getting around to having a date now, after all this time.

Gail was full after the meal, but she'd been missing chocolate, so she ordered dessert for them both to share. And because they both loved coffee, they had it with dessert, talking, taking their time. It felt like they had all the time in the world, though of course, they didn't. Their holiday would be over much too soon and there were more tough times ahead, heartbreaking, even. But for now, it was enough.

Cas paid the bill and they exited the restaurant, hand in hand.

Chuck walked by them and did a double-take as the couple passed him. He remembered the woman from the bar last night. She was talking animatedly to her male companion, and he laughed at something she said. This guy must have been the one she was going to meet last night. Well, Chuck admitted to himself, that explained a lot. The two looked like they were in love and if he were to be honest, Chuck had to admit this guy was much better-looking. Funny, the man had more than a passing resemblance to Castiel. That was impossible, Chuck knew; then it dawned on him. That must be the actor who played Castiel on the TV show. Chuck knew from the convention schedule that he was due to take the stage tomorrow. Chuck put the couple out of his mind and continued on his way.

Gail and Cas entered their room and she turned on a lamp. They stood there looking at each other for a moment. Cas was suddenly acutely aware that they were alone, no Winchesters, in a room that was predominated by beds, and he felt nervous again. How to proceed? Or was there any proceeding to be done at all? He and Gail had talked about many things tonight, but this situation had not been one of them.

Gail was feeling shy again. She was aware of the same things he was. She suspected very strongly that Cas had had no experience in this area, though she'd never been able to work up the nerve to ask him or either Winchester about it. And she'd had next to no experience herself. So, what now?

Fortunately, there was a small couch off to the side of the room. She took his hand and said, "Come, sit with me."

So they went over to the couch and sat side by side, looking at each other, at a loss for words. This was ridiculous, Gail thought. They lived together, for goodness sake, and they were both adults. Sure, the circumstances were not what you would call usual, but they should be able to talk about this.

"Cas," she began, but he held up his hand.

"No, let me go first," he said. "Please." His face was serious.

She was quiet. Waiting to see what he wanted to say. Hoping he was thinking the same thing she was.

"I..." he started, then swallowed through the lump in his throat and tried again. "I've never...been with a woman before." There. He'd said it.

Gail had just been thinking as much, but now found herself again at a loss for words.

Cas spoke again. "What do you want, Gail? What do you need?"

She smiled then, thanking him in her head for making it easy for her to speak. She took his hand. "You," she said simply.

Then they were kissing, the way they had kissed the morning they had watched the sunrise together, and when his hands began to explore her body, she moved closer to him.

This time, Cas broke the kiss. "Are you sure?" he asked Gail. He was trembling with equal parts nervousness and excitement, but he was Cas, and he had to ask. Gail knew that because she knew him, but he had to be kidding. He wasn't, of course. He was genuinely looking for an answer. She almost laughed, but was afraid he wouldn't understand, so Gail settled for a smile.

"Yes, I'm sure," she told him. "I love you."

Then he kissed her again, smiling through the kiss. She'd said just the thing he'd wanted to hear the most right now. His nervousness vanished, and Cas stood, extending his hand to Gail. She took it, and they walked over to his bed together.

Chuck met Metatron at the bar, as they had arranged.

Ever since they'd accidentally met here and "Ethan" had invoked the name of Aurielle, identifying himself to Chuck, Metatron had kept a close watch on him. Chuck had made himself a promise that he would not return to the dark side, but he was afraid of what Metatron might do to him if he openly defied him. He knew how evil Metatron was and as one of God's Originals, all he had to do was kill an Angel and he would be back to full power. Chuck didn't think he'd been able to do it yet, but it was only a matter of time. So Chuck would play along for the time being until he figured out what to do. Now he regretted having taken a vessel who had so closely resembled him. If he'd looked like someone else, Metatron never would have recognized him.

They made small talk about the convention, and Chuck mentioned that he had just seen the actor who played Castiel in the TV series coming out of a restaurant in the hotel. "It's amazing how much he actually looks like Castiel," Chuck said, smiling, still making small talk. Now that he'd decided to let go of his resentment, he no longer felt hatred or envy towards the real Castiel. Live and let live; that was going to be Chuck's new philosophy.

But Chuck had forgotten, at least temporarily, the extent of Metatron's hatred of Castiel. And there was one other thing he didn't know. This afternoon, Metatron had overheard a couple of the people running the convention say that the actor who played Castiel would not be flying in until tomorrow morning.

"He was with a woman I tried to pick up here last night," Chuck continued conversationally. "Guess I was barking up the wrong tree."

Something clicked in Metatron's brain then, and he casually asked what the woman looked like. Thinking they were still making idle conversation, Chuck described Gail.

Metatron's mind raced. It was impossible. This just had to be the wildest of coincidences. What would the Angels Castiel and Gail be doing in Las Vegas? And why would they be coming out of a restaurant? No, it was too crazy...

"Now I know what she was doing reading a brochure on the convention," Chuck went on. He couldn't seem to stop himself from talking. But Metatron wasn't saying much, and at least this was a safe, non-evil subject. "She must have been checking the schedule to see when her boyfriend was free," Chuck continued.

The convention. Right. Metatron had been planning to go tomorrow anyway, to keep an eye on Chuck. He wanted to make sure he knew where his old friend was at all times. He would scrutinize all of the attendees, just in case.

"If you see her tomorrow, point her out," he said idly to Chuck. There would be no need for that, of course. Actor or no actor, Metatron would recognize Gail anywhere. His vessel's pulse quickened. Imagine if it were true. Just imagine if he were able to kill both Gail and Castiel and take their Grace. With Castiel's power, he'd be unstoppable. But where was he going to get his hands on an Angel blade?

Crowley was getting close now. He could feel it. Ordinary Angels could sense each other's presence unless they were warded, but the handful of God's Originals that were left could sense another's whereabouts regardless of the circumstance. Even though Metatron no longer had Angelic powers, he still had that tiny bit of essence in him that allowed Crowley to pick up a scent.

As Crowley approached the Rio Hotel, he checked his inside jacket pocket for the Angel blade he had stashed there before coming to Earth. He was fairly sure that Metatron was now powerless, but he had brought it just to be on the safe side. He may be in Las Vegas, but he didn't feel like gambling with his life.

Now Cas truly understood what all the love songs, sonnets and those psalms were saying.

Gail's head was on his chest and she was looking up at him, smiling. He smoothed her hair back from her face.

"Did I do all right?" he asked her.

"Do you really need to ask?" she said mischeviously. But more was needed in this situation, much more. "You were wonderful," she told him, planting little kisses on his chest. His pulse was starting to quicken again. Did she have any idea what she was doing to him?

Then she stopped and looked up at him again. "And me?" she asked. Mostly teasingly, but still needing to hear it from him.

"Come here," he said, lifting her up to kiss him. "I love you," he said, between kisses, and that was really the only answer she needed.

An hour or so later they fell asleep in each other's arms, and woke up the same way the next morning.

Gail's eyes opened and she looked at the clock radio on the nightstand out of habit. Then she closed her eyes again and rolled over, smiling contentedly. What did it matter what time it was? She was never getting out of this bed again. Never.

She felt Cas's body against hers and he kissed her bare shoulder, then her neck. She enjoyed the sensation for a few moments, then rolled back around to face him.

"Good morning," she said. He was smiling. "Have you been awake long?" she asked him.

"Just a short while," Cas answered. He had been watching her sleep, afraid to drift off again on the off chance that this had just been a dream.

Then Cas's cell phone rang. He reached over to the nightstand and picked it up.

It was Dean, asking if they wanted to go to breakfast. "Talk to Gail," Cas said, handing the phone to her. He suddenly had to urinate. He kissed her on the forehead and walked to the bathroom.

"Hi, Dean, how was your night?" Gail said cheerfully into the phone.

"Great," he replied. "And yours?" She could hear the grin in his voice.

She wasn't about to divulge any details, so she settled for saying, "Wonderful."

"So, breakfast?" Dean said. "You two kids must be really hungry this morning," he teased.

Gail rolled her eyes, smiling. Okay, she'd play along. "Starving," she confirmed, suddenly realizing it was true.

Dean laughed. Finally, he thought. Good for Cas. Good for both of them.

Cas came out of the bathroom and Gail realized she needed to go too. Sighing, she handed the phone back to Cas, kissing him on the cheek. "Be right back," she told him.

Cas took the phone from her, smiling. He couldn't seem to stop smiling this morning.

"Dean?" he said into the phone.

"Cas!" Dean replied. "How are you, buddy?"

Cas knew his friend was teasing him, but he didn't care. "Wonderful," he said, unconsciously echoing Gail's comment from a minute earlier.

"So...breakfast in half an hour?" Dean prompted.

Gail came out of the bathroom then and Cas looked at her. "Make it an hour," he said to Dean, hanging up the phone and tossing it onto Gail's unused bed.

She came to him and he kissed her on the mouth then, and she was kissing him back, and it wasn't a dream. It was, well...wonderful.

Dean looked at the phone in his hand. Did Cas just hang up on him? He couldn't remember that ever happening before. But he decided to give the guy a break. He was only going to be a human for 2 more days and he obviously had a lot of making up to do.

"Well?" Sam said, coming out of the bathroom.

"Breakfast in an hour," Dean told him, grinning.

"An hour?" Sam asked. "Why so long?"

Dean raised his eyebrows, looking at his brother, and Sam got it.

"Oh." Sam grinned then too. "Way to go, Cas."

Yeah, Dean thought. "My turn for the shower," he told Sam.

All four of them ate a hearty breakfast, and as they were lingering over coffee, Gail and Dean were facing off.

"So tell me, what did you do last night, Dean?" Gail asked him.

"I had a very good night," Dean said evasively. And he had. He and Sam had had a good meal and a few drinks, and then Dean had hooked up with a girl he met at the bar and had gotten back late. He felt great this morning. Probably almost as great as Cas felt, he thought, smiling inwardly.

"Who's not giving a straight answer now?" Gail teased, thinking of all the times Dean had given Cas a hard time about answering questions evasively.

"I'll tell you what, Gail," Dean said, leaning forward and staring her down. "I'll tell you what I did if you tell me what you did."

Damn. He had her there. Though it was pretty obvious from the way she and Cas had been behaving around each other that the dynamic in their relationship had changed, Gail was not going to have this conversation with Dean, and they both knew it.

She sat back in her chair. "Okay, Dean. You win. What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas."

Dean lifted his cup of coffee to her in salute.

Cas was amused by their exchange, but he was also feeling a little sad. He and Gail only had today and tomorrow to go, and then they'd be back to being Angels again. Who would have ever thought he'd miss being a human? He sighed inwardly. He supposed the physical part of their relationship would be out of the question once they were Angels again. At least, he had never heard of such a thing being possible. They'd just have to make the most of the next 2 days in this regard and then look forward to being together in that way once a year from then on. Well, considering how many years he'd waited for his mate, he guessed that wasn't that long.

Cas put his arm around Gail's waist and drew her to him, saying into her ear, "What do you want to do today?"

Oh, she knew what she wanted to do today. His breath in her ear was making her think of it right now. But, back to reality.

Gail sighed, knowing what she was about to say would be very unpopular at this table.

"I think we should all go to the Supernatural convention," she said to the three men.

As expected, the Winchesters groaned. Cas sat back in his chair, looking thoughtful but saying nothing.

"Come on, Gail," Dean tried, but she cut him off. "Dean, I know you don't like the idea, and I understand, but Bobby wanted us to go, remember?"

"She's right, Dean," Cas said.

Dean rolled his eyes. "Oh, big surprise, Cas, you're taking her side," he said, gesturing to Gail.

Cas was annoyed. "As Gail just reminded us, and rightfully so," he emphasized, "Bobby wanted us to go." He lowered his voice. "And as Bobby is God now, he must have his reasons."

Sam had been quiet up to this point. Truthfully, he'd been feeling a little left out. Seeing Cas and Gail so affectionate with each other this morning had unexpectedly made him melancholy. He couldn't remember the last time he'd had any sort of a relationship with a woman. Dean had hooked up last night and he'd come back before the morning, but Sam had spent the rest of his night alone, looking at all the happy couples in the casinos and on the Strip. He probably could have picked up a random girl and had a one-night stand himself, but his heart hadn't been in it. He wanted a bit more for himself.

But he felt the same way as Dean when it came to the Supernatural series of books, and the fact that there was now a TV series based on them didn't make him feel any better about the subject. The books had been nothing but trouble for the brothers. Look at what had happened with Becky.

So he sided with Dean. "What could possibly make us want to go to the stupid thing?" he asked Gail.

Though she'd been wondering the same thing herself, and just yesterday had felt like she never wanted to set foot in the place again, Gail inexplicably felt it was really important for the four of them to go today. So she smiled and offered the only carrot she could think of that might entice the brothers to go. Well, two carrots, actually.

"Because the actor who plays Castiel is going to be there today," she told them, looking at Cas, whose brow furrowed. This thought had never occurred to him. "And," she turned back to the brothers, "there are a lot of cute young girls there who idolize Sam and Dean."

OK, she had their interest now. Sighing, knowing Gail well enough by now to know that she was not going to let it go, Sam and Dean stood.

"Okay, let's go before I change my mind," Dean said, glaring at her.

So here they were in the concourse, and the men were perusing the merchandise, as Gail herself had done the day before. They had bemused looks on their faces. Dean picked up a model of his Baby and examined it, fascinated. He had to admit, they'd gotten most of the details right. He wondered how much ridicule Sam would subject him to if he bought it. Shuddering, he put the model back down on the table as if it were hot to the touch.

Sam was looking at the photos of the actors who played himself, Dean and Cas on the show. Gail had mentioned the resemblance, and he could see it too. He nudged Cas. "This is the guy who plays you on the show," Sam said to him, holding up the picture for a side-by-side comparison. "He's much better-looking, of course," Sam teased. "Better built, too."

"That goes without saying," Dean chipped in.

Cas smiled. Nothing the brothers said was going to get to him today. But he couldn't resist. "I'm surprised you'd both notice something like that," he teased them back. "Good to see you're so open-minded about the beauty of the male form."

Dean looked startled at that, and Sam dropped the photo much like Dean had dropped the model of the Impala a few moments ago.

Gail smirked, but she was a little preoccupied. She was studying the schedule of the actors' appearances on stage. She wanted them to check out the actor who played Castiel, but definitely wanted to avoid seeing the actor who played Crowley. She realized the actor was just a human man doing a job, but he too resembled the real Crowley and she remembered how she'd felt yesterday. Her blood threatened to boil again just thinking of him, and she could just imagine how Sam and Dean would feel. Not to mention human Cas. He'd already punched one guy out on this trip just for calling her a nasty name.

The eeriness of the actors' resemblance to their real-life counterparts was starting to get to her, though. What kind of forces were at work here? Was it just that the makers of the TV show had studied Chuck's books so closely that they'd hired actors who fit Chuck's descriptions of the real men? Could that be all there was to it?

"Gail!" A female voice, cutting through her thoughts. She looked up from the brochure to see Helen coming towards her.

"Hi!" Helen said brightly. "I was hoping to see you here today."

Crap. But Gail felt kind of bad about being so rude to the girl yesterday, so she greeted Helen and apologized, saying she'd just remembered she'd had to meet someone yesterday and that was why she'd left so abruptly.

Becky was mollified. "So, are you ready to see 'Castiel'?" she asked Gail excitedly.

Gail's companions had moved on to another table further along, but Cas's head turned sharply at Becky's question. What? He looked at Gail.

Double crap. Gail gave him a small shake of her head and made a gesture to Becky, hoping he'd understand her attempt at non-verbal communication.

But Becky had followed Gail's gaze, and her eyes widened a bit. Then, when Sam and Dean turned around, Becky's eyes got wider still and her mouth dropped open.

Damn it, Dean thought. Here it comes. He hoped Gail was happy.

Gail moved closer to the men and Becky followed, moving right past Dean and staring up at Sam. She tore her eyes away from him for a second and looked at Gail, then at the three men again.

"Are these your friends?" she asked Gail in a hushed voice.

Gail sighed. Great. Dean was going to kill her. "Yes," she confirmed, not seeing a choice.

"Those are the best costumes I've ever seen," Becky breathed, staring at the men. "You'll win the contest for sure." Then she looked at Cas. "But you should really be wearing your trenchcoat," she admonished him. "I guess you're saving it for the stage."

Gail was going to laugh, and she was going to laugh hard, so she moved away, covering her face with the schedule she was holding. This could be a very fun afternoon.

Several girls surrounded Dean a few minutes later, talking to him about how much he looked like the actor who played him on the show. A couple of girls held out hope that it might be him, but most of the Dean Girls were skeptical. He and the guy who played Sam weren't due to be here until tomorrow, and there was no way the actual star would be walking around here among them without a bodyguard. Still, this guy was cute, and he was the closest they were ever going to get.

Gail looked over in his direction and they made eye contact. He raised his eyebrows to her as if to say Look what you started, and she gave him a half-apologetic shrug in return.

"Maybe you can give me some advice on how to get out of Dean's doghouse after this is all over," Gail murmured to Cas.

"Beer, and lots of it," he quipped. As she laughed, he looked at Dean and said, "I wouldn't worry about him. He doesn't look all that unhappy to me."

Gail gave him a hug. "I really do love you, you know," she said to him.

Cas was pleased. He tilted her face up to his and they shared a very human kiss, oblivious to the people around them. "Never stop saying that," he breathed.

Becky looked over at the couple. Wow, Gail really was a Cas Girl, she thought, impressed. She'd even gone out and gotten herself a boyfriend that looked like him. Now THAT was dedication.

She looked at Gail's other friend then, the guy who looked like Sam. Maybe she should take a leaf out of Gail's book. Becky had to admit to herself that she was once again hopelessly, totally in love with Sam Winchester. Her constant attendance at this convention sonce it opened had fed her old addiction and since she knew she'd never have the real thing, this guy could be a viable alternative.

So the new, confident Becky approached Sam and struck up a conversation with him, and he was actually responding to her and smiling.

The girl was cute, Sam thought, and even if she seemed a little too into this whole Supernatural thing for his taste, he hadn't received any female attention in quite a while. Funny, he'd just been thinking about that this morning. He was rethinking his earlier stand on, well, one-night stands. He'd be here for two more nights, actually. Maybe he should ask her out for a drink.

It was getting close to the time for the appearance of the actor playing Castiel, so Gail and Cas went to collect the brothers.

Chuck saw the four of them together on his way to the auditorium and froze in his tracks. Metatron bumped into Chuck's back and swore. What the hell?

Chuck was panicking. Three guys who looked almost exactly like the Winchesters and Castiel, with the actor who was playing Castiel about to appear onstage in a different room? Then he looked at Gail, really looked at her this time. Standing next to a guy who looked enough like Castiel to be his twin. His mind flashed back to God's office, and the Angel sitting beside Castiel there. And he finally got the connection. He had to keep Metatron away from them.

But just then, Becky called out, "Gail!" She wanted to sit with Gail and her friends in the auditorium.

Metatron looked over and saw the four of them then. But the Winchesters were dead; he had killed them himself. And the guy they were with looked like Castiel, but he was wearing different clothes. This must just be some kind of weird convention "cosplay".

But he had heard the name Gail, and as the woman turned around to answer Becky's call, Metatron saw the face of his killer. Here they were. It was impossible, but they were actually here.

Metatron started to smile.

Chuck had seen Metatron smile, and his insides were churning. Chuck was a good guy now. He had to do something. But what? His only consolation was that this was a public place; Metatron was not likely to do anything here. People were filing into the auditorium, though. He grabbed Metatron by the arm and propelled him into the crowd.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Chuck?" Metatron said angrily.

"This is not the time or the place," Chuck said, thinking fast. Moving him along. "There are too many people here." Metatron thought on that. Perhaps Chuck was right. "Besides, you don't even have a weapon, do you?" Chuck asked him quietly, trying not to betray his nervousness at the question.

"No," Metatron said bitterly. He was frustrated. Here the Angels were, right under his nose, and he had no Angel blade with which to kill them. He thought furiously. All that Grace within his reach, and no way to get it. An ordinary knife would do him no good; otherwise, he would have just marched over there and killed them where they stood. This was unbelievable.

Crowley stood in the doorway of the concourse, watching everyone file into the auditorium. He had been sitting in the darkened auditorium earlier, watching the actor who played him on the TV show speak. Rather a good-looking fellow, and well spoken too, Crowley thought with amusement.

He'd waved a hand over himself and was now wearing the same clothes as the actor had been, and he stood discreetly away from the crowd. He saw Chuck standing with the vessel he knew to be Metatron, and Crowley also saw the Winchesters, Castiel, and Gail. He was not fooled, as others had been. Castiel was also an Original, and Crowley knew he was the genuine article. Even though Castiel was currently human, like Metatron he had the essence of an Original, much like a birthmark. Crowley did not know he was a human, he just knew that it was the Angel Castiel standing there with the Winchesters and his little Angel girlfriend, and the human part of Crowley was seething. He was supposed to be dead! Gail's brother and Crowley's Knight, Frank, had killed Castiel right before Crowley's eyes, and the Winchesters had borne his body out of the den. Gail had followed behind, heartbroken. It had been a sight which had warmed Crowley's dark heart. He had no longer been physically present for that last part, but he'd known Castiel was dead, had sensed that his essence had vanished in that bond that Originals had. So, how was he standing here now?

Then his mind went over the events in the den prior to Castiel's death, and Crowley's eyes narrowed. He remembered Gail having exhibited great powers, powers she should not have possessed. Had she used these mysterious powers on the Angel, brought him back to life somehow? Though highly unusual, he supposed it was possible. But he was puzzled. Only God himself or an Original was supposed to have that kind of power. As an Original, Crowley had it himself, had used it to bring the Winchesters back after Metatron had killed them.

Crowley frowned. In any event, there seemed to be way too much reviving of his enemies going on lately, and it was pissing him off. In a way, it was his own fault. He had allowed himself to wallow in depression and drink, and had lost sight of what was going on around him. And apparently, there had been plenty.

He looked at Chuck and Metatron again. Chuck was pushing Metatron into the crowd entering the auditorium, looking back at the Winchesters and the Angels with a panicked expression. Crowley smirked, misinterpreting Chuck's look. He could just bet that Chuck wanted to avoid the four of them. Since Chuck's escape from Hell, he himself would be powerless. That was probably why he'd stuck with Metatron, for protection. Any one of those four could make mincemeat out of Chuck if he were on his own, and Crowley knew they had good reason to be upset with Chuck.

Like most, Crowley did not have any love for Chuck. Funnily enough, Crowley had read one of Chuck's Supernatural books soon after the series had come out, just to see, and he had not liked the way Chuck had portrayed him at all. Chuck had written the Crowley character as some kind of buffoon, almost a comic foil for the Winchesters. Even the actor who played Crowley in the TV series had seemed a little too nice, too humorous; and he spoke highly of his fellow cast members. While the real Crowley did realize that these men were playing make-believe, this still irked him. The feeling may be irrational, but there it was.

So he wouldn't have given a damn about what happened to Chuck, but Crowley was beginning to reconsider his original position on Metatron. He had come here to Las Vegas to make an example out of Metatron; however, now that Castiel still lived and Gail seemed to have prodigious powers, Crowley thought that Metatron might be a useful ally.

All of the parties of interest to him had now gone into the auditorium, so Crowley remained where he was. He would keep an eye on the doors to the auditorium and follow Chuck and Metatron once they emerged, staying well away from the Winchesters and the Angels. For now.

Sam and Dean sat in the darkened auditorium, amused by seeing an actor who looked very much like Cas receiving squeals from all the girls in the audience and telling decidedly non-Angelic stories. Gail had deliberately planted herself in the seat between Dean and Cas in order to keep Dean in check. She'd expected a bit of ribbing to come Cas's way from the brothers but wanted to run interference for him in case it got too out of hand.

But Dean only made a couple of smartass comments, then Gail elbowed him in the arm and, thus warned, he stopped. She needn't have worried, though. Cas actually seemed to be enthralled with his actor counterpart, and he smiled at Dean's remarks. Cas was holding her hand, feeling like they were on another date, maybe this time to see a one-man show at the theatre.

Meanwhile, Sam was sitting on the other side of Dean, and Becky was sitting next to him. She really wasn't supposed to be there. She had been dismayed to find out that the four of them had Gold admission tickets, entitling them to sit near the stage. Becky herself only had a general admission ticket and was supposed to be sitting considerably further back. But when her new friends entered the auditorium, she traipsed along with them, enthralled by Sam, and had found that the seat next to him was unoccupied. So she thought she would just stay there until someone kicked her back to general admission. But no one had come, and Becky was enjoying the nearness of her Sam-alike. She realized they had been talking for a while but she still didn't know his name. She'd have to ask him after they got out of here.

Sam was aware of how close Helen was sitting to him, and the fact that she was staring at him in the darkness. He wasn't sure whether he felt flattered or a little creeped out. He decided he'd talk to her once they got out of here for a few more minutes and decide. Maybe he'd keep Dean around for the conversation. Much as Sam hated to admit it, Dean seemed to know a stalker when he saw one. After all, Dean had been the one to warn him about Becky.

Poor Sam. He had no idea.

Gail leaned over to Cas after about half an hour and spoke into his ear. "Let's get out of here," she said, thinking to beat the crowd that would be exiting the auditorium shortly. She had been enjoying the surreal sensation of a "Castiel" on stage and a "Cas" sitting right beside her, but the longer they were here, the more uneasy Gail began to feel. It was irrational to feel that way, she knew, yet she still did. Gail had put a lot of stock in intuition when she'd had her psychic powers, and when she'd become an Angel, she'd learned to sense certain things, so she trusted these feelings when they came.

Cas looked at her and she squeezed his hand. "Now," she added. He looked her in the eyes, and he knew her well enough to know that she meant it.

"Dean," she hissed at him. "Get Sam and let's go." He looked at her strangely, but Cas had already risen, pulling Gail with him. So Dean elbowed Sam, and the brothers followed their friends out of the auditorium.

Poor Becky sat there, confused. Another abrupt exit. Should she follow them, or not? She waited a minute, then decided. She couldn't let them get away, not before at least finding out his name and where he was staying.

They walked out into the concourse area, and Gail was in the lead, practically pulling Cas's arm out of its socket. They had to get out of here, RIGHT NOW.

Dean was behind them, yelling, "Wait up! Gail, what the hell?"

Crowley heard Dean yell, and had time to conceal himself behind a partition near the concourse door.

Gail turned back to Dean, giving him and Sam a moment to catch up. "I'm sorry, Dean," she said. Now she felt stupid. The feeling of urgency had now gone away, as suddenly as it had come.

"What's going on, Gail?" Sam asked her.

She was flustered now, confused. "I don't know, Sam. I just had a really strong feeling there for a second."

Sam nodded. He understood the power of intuition.

"But now it's gone." Gail turned to Cas.

Cas also understood the power of intuition, but he didn't know quite what to make of it, nor what to make of the fact that she said the feeling was now suddenly gone. He felt something now too, like the low buzzing of an insect. He was aware that they were in strange territory here, and he put it down to that. He had not seen or heard anything otherwise, nothing which should have alarmed her to this extent. He gave her a slight shrug.

"I'm sorry, guys," Gail said, feeling extremely foolish now. "I guess it was nothing."

Crowley was watching this exchange from behind the partition. It was fortunate for him that Dean had stopped Gail when he did and called out her name; if the group had passed right by him without warning, they would surely have seen him. Even though he was dressed in jeans and a T-shirt, as his actor counterpart had been, Castiel would have known who he really was. He was frankly surprised Castiel hadn't picked up on him already. Castiel was an Original also; how was it that he did not sense Crowley, or Metatron, for that matter?

What Crowley did not yet know was that Castiel and Gail were now entirely human. As a human, Castiel only had that tiny essence at the moment, and the presence of two other Originals had only come through as the low drone he'd been hearing, not as the beacon it normally would have been. As for Gail's sudden feeling? It must have been pure intuition and nothing more. Had Crowley known they were human, he could have saved himself the trouble of seeking out Metatron. As they were human, they had no powers, none at all. As humans, they were vulnerable.

Becky caught up to the group. She was by now extremely confused. It was outside her realm of possibility that a Cas Girl would actually leave the room while her guy was on stage, lookalike boyfriend or no lookalike boyfriend. And the four of them had all gotten up and left at the same time, and they had left in a hurry. But now here they were, just standing in the concourse, looking at each other. What was going on?

But she'd heard Gail adddress Sam by name. Sam?! Were these guys so in character that they called themselves by the same names? Or could it be...were they the real Sam, Dean and Castiel?

She ran up to the group and stood next to Sam. Scrutinizing him. If only she could be sure. Then she remembered; the books mentioned he had a birthmark on his chest. She had never seen Sam without a shirt, but if she could somehow figure out how to do so, she could confirm his identity one way or the other.

So the newly confident Becky mentioned to her new friends that she was going to the hotel pool for a dip in about half an hour. Did they want to come?

Sam had been wanting a swim ever since they got here, and it was already Saturday afternoon. The others said no thanks, but he said he'd probably see her there once he went upstairs and got his trunks. Now it was confirmed; he was staying right here!

Becky left the concourse then and went to the first store she saw, to buy a bathing suit. She had been playing blackjack every night here after the convention events were over, and her lucky streak of the first day had continued. As this weekend would likely be a once-in-a-lifetime event for her, Becky had checked out of the motel her vessel had been staying in after the first night and she had taken an affordable room at the Rio. She was now so very glad she had. If she found out Gail's friend was the real Sam, and if she could somehow get him to come up to her room...wow.

Sam went upstairs to get his bathing suit, and Dean, Cas and Gail decided to play some blackjack.

As they didn't have to play against each other, the three of them sat companionably at the same table, Gail between the two men. Dean ordered drinks for them, and by the time the waitress came back, all three were up.

Dean and Gail had both played blackjack before and were aware of the strategy involved. Though Cas had never played the game before, he was proving himself to be adept at it. He made riskier bets than the other two, but always at the right time, it seemed.

After about an hour, Gail was starting to feel hungry, so she suggested they get something to eat. The trio cashed out and went to a bar that served burgers. Now this is more my style, Gail thought. She had enjoyed being at the elegant restaurant las night with Cas as a change of pace, but she was a lot more relaxed here.

They had burgers and fries, and the men had a beer.

Gail sat back after finishing her burger and about half of the fries on her plate.

"I'm full," she announced, patting her stomach. She sighed. "I'm really gonna miss eating, though."

Dean paused in the act of taking a drink from his beer bottle and looked at her.

"I can't imagine not being able to eat or drink," he said.

"It's not that we CAN'T," she tried to explain, "it's just..." Gail looked to Cas for help.

"It's just...all...too much," Cas said, knowing this was no explanation at all. Actually, he'd been starting to feel that way about Las Vegas as a whole. It had been a novelty to come here, and he had experienced just about everything he'd wanted to as a human here, but Cas was frankly getting a little tired of the place. He and Gail would have to go somewhere else the next time they had the chance to be human, he thought. Somewhere more serene.

As if reading his mind, Gail took his hand and said, "How about we take a walk outside? Look at the lights?" She'd had the feeling Cas was getting a little restless, and truth be told, she was feeling the same way about Vegas as he was. It was a fun enough place, but it was getting kind of old for her, too.

"I have to go to the washroom first," she told the men, sighing. She rose from the table.

When Gail had gone, Dean looked at Cas. "I'll take off now," Dean said. "You two probably want to be alone."

Cas nodded. Dean was his best friend and he hadn't wanted to hurt his feelings, but Cas had been about to tell Dean that very thing.

They smiled at each other. Dean had no smartass comment to offer for a change. He was happy for Cas. He'd kind of miss his friend as a human, though. Human Cas had been a lot of fun to hang around with.

So he rose from the table and clapped Cas on the shoulder. Cas smiled up at Dean and then watched his friend as he melted into the casino crowd.

Earlier, Crowley had emerged from behind the partition once Gail and her friends had gone, and he waited for Chuck and Metatron to come out of the auditorium. He'd waved his hand again and changed back into his customary suit. There was no need for subterfuge now, and Metatron would know who he was anyway.

Soon afterwards, his targets did emerge from the auditorium, and as they passed by where he stood, Metatron's vessel looked at Crowley and did a double-take.

"We need to talk," Crowley said to Metatron.

Oh, crap, Chuck thought. This was bad, really bad. He'd thought this guy was the actor who played Crowley when he'd first seen him, but the way Metatron was looking at the man gave Chuck pause.

Crowley looked at Chuck then. "Yes, it's me," he snapped at Chuck. "I've seen our mutual enemies, and I've decided to let your desertion of Hell slide for the moment." He opened his jacket slightly to reveal the Angel blade.

Metatron smiled.

Sam and Becky had taken a swim together and were now enjoying a drink at the poolside bar. It was starting to get dark already, Becky saw with dismay.

As soon as Sam had taken his shirt off, Becky saw the birthmark and she knew. God had brought her to the convention for a reason. He had delivered her Sam back to her, and she was never going to let him go again.

But Becky still had enough of a grip on reality to know that she could not reveal her true identity to Sam. He'd rejected her once and it had literally killed her. But she'd learned from her mistakes. He knew her as Helen now, and she was a strong, confident young woman.

It was hard to hold up her end of the conversation, though. He asked her what she did and she didn't know quite what to say. She settled for the truth: she was a receptionist, but she was between jobs right now. If only he knew where her last job was, she thought, smiling to herself.

So Becky steered the conversation Sam's way, asking him questions about himself and what he liked. She knew all the answers, of course; Becky was convinced she knew Sam better than Dean did. Probably better than Sam himself. After all, she'd been studying her subject for years, and obsession was a great educator. She put her hand on his arm while he was talking and he did not move away.

Once they'd finished their drinks, they gathered up their stuff and she told Sam she wanted to go to her room and change. He said he'd walk with her; he needed to go to his room to change as well.

Being a gentleman at heart, Sam walked Becky to her room. He was still on the fence about this girl. She seemed very sweet and innocent, so he'd decided against making a move. She didn't seem like the one-night-stand type, and though he missed female companionship badly, Sam's conscience wouldn't allow himself to use her in that way.

Still, he'd had a nice time with her, so when they got to her door, Sam told her so, and gave her a brief kiss. Then he stepped back.

"Well, goodnight, Helen," Sam said to her.

She stared up at him, wide-eyed. He was leaving? If she'd had any seduction skills, she would have used them right then and there. But Becky was a virgin and was indeed innocent, and Sam was moving away.

"Goodnight," she breathed. Then he was gone.

Becky entered her room and dropped her bag on the floor. She didn't know whether to laugh or to cry.

But as she showered, Becky found herself smiling. Of course Sam hadn't tried anything; he was a gentleman. But he had actually kissed her, and he said he'd had a nice time with her. She touched her lips as if to seal his kiss there. Sam could love her. No, check that. He WOULD love her. It was only a matter of time. She would probably see him at the convention tomorrow. It was the climax of the whole thing, and the actors who played Sam and Dean were going to be there. Becky imagined Sam would be too curious to pass that up. And if he wasn't there, she would comb every inch of this hotel until she found him. Becky was not going to let him get away ever again.

Cas and Gail walked up and down the Strip hand in hand, enjoying the fresh air and the sights.

They stopped by the musical fountains and watched the show, then Cas paid a photographer to take a picture of them in front of the fountains. Happy, smiling. A human couple, on vacation. They both watched the Polaroid develop, Cas in amazement. Though it was old technology, Gail had seen this before, but she still found it wondrous, and she loved the look on his face as he watched the picture emerge.

Cas gave her the photo and she put it in her purse, It would make a nice souvenir of their first vacation together as a couple. Tomorrow she'd have to get another picture taken with her two other favourite guys.

Then they made their way back to their room at the hotel. And once they were inside, there was no nervousness and no hesitation. They came together immediately, kissing, caressing each other's bodies. Loving each other.

Cas awoke in the middle of the night, needing to urinate. He sighed inwardly. He would not miss that.

He moved gently so as not to disturb Gail, who was sleeping deeply beside him. Cas smiled gently. He WOULD miss that. Then again, he supposed there was no reason they couldn't lay together when they were both Angels again. Even with both sex and sleep off the table, he enjoyed cuddling her.

Once he was finished, Cas felt thirsty, so he drank a glass of water at the bathroom sink and then filled the glass again, bringing it with him and setting it gently on the nightstand. Gail might be thirsty too if she woke up as he had.

But for now, she was still sleeping and he felt wide awake, so Cas went to the window and pulled back the drape with one hand. It was still dark out and he gazed at the lights of the city, deep in thought. Tomorrow was their last day. He thought about all the experiences he'd had here. He was pretty much done with Las Vegas, but he had very few regrets. Cas smiled. He'd certainly made the most of the Las Vegas experience as a human. He'd gotten drunk, gone to a strip club, gambled, and gotten into a fight. As far as he'd been able to discern, that was Vegas 101.

He looked back at Gail again. Making love with her was his best experience, of course. Funny, the hardliners in Heaven would call that a sin. He and Gail were not married, after all. But he felt as though they were, and they did love each other. His Father would not have created anything that felt that good and then not wanted people to do it; that would be illogical. Cas didn't think his Father would disapprove.

Cas continued to watch Gail sleep, smiling gently. But then she began to thrash around, and he heard her say, "No...no...", and his smile vanished. Then Gail screamed, "No!" and bolted upright, and he ran to the bed.

"Gail!" he called to her. "What's wrong?"

"Castiel?" She used his Angel name, something she hadn't done since they'd come here. She was clutching at him and he took her in his arms, holding her tightly to him.

"What's the matter?" Cas asked her.

She pulled out of the embrace and looked at his face. "Oh, thank God," she said, touching him just to make sure he was there, that he was real.

Cas saw that she was crying, and he was alarmed. What was going on here?

"I had a bad dream," she told him, still touching him. Under other circumstances, he would have felt quite differently about what she was doing, but now was not the time.

A nightmare, then. He had heard about those, but had never experienced one, of course. But he knew enough to say, "It was only a dream, Gail."

She now knew that, but: "It seemed so real. I was somewhere dark, and I couldn't find you. Then I saw you on the floor, and I couldn't save you this time, I couldn't..." Gail's voice broke, and she cried silently.

He pulled her close again, murmuring, "It's OK. I'm fine. Everything's fine."

Gail collected herself in a couple of minutes. He was right, it had just been a bad dream. She would miss sleeping, but she certainly wouldn't miss those.

They lay down together, and he kept his arms around her, feeling very protective. But Gail had calmed down, and after a few more minutes, she started kissing him in that way that she had, and soon he was feeling something else altogether.

They made love again then, falling asleep in each other's arms afterwards, just as they had the night before. But this time would be the last time.

\- 4 - Dark

It was late at night and Bobby was still in the office, hard at work.

He was starting to feel the pressures of the job. How the hell had God done it? So many open files, so many plates spinning in the air, people to keep track of. Just as you were monitoring one situation, another was breaking loose somewhere else. If God Himself couldn't be all thing and do all things at once, how the hell was Bobby supposed to do it?

He had seen a lot of things since his friends went to Vegas, things that had both amused and alarmed him. Bobby had laughed out loud when Cas had punched that douchebag in the poker room, and at Sam and Dean's reactions to seeing all the Supernatural convention merchandise. He'd admired Gail's tenacious attempts to follow his instructions about attending the convention, though Bobby joined her in being mystified as to why they'd had to go.

He was increasingly having trouble keeping the evil forces away from his friends. Bobby had seen Chuck and the vessel he knew to be Metatron looking at them at the convention. Bobby knew that the pair still thought Cas and Gail to be Angels, and they hadn't seemed to be interested in engaging the Winchesters in a public place, so Bobby had felt safe enough for the time being to look elsewhere for just a moment. He knew that Metaton had no powers and no Angel blade with which to get them, and sure enough, Bobby's friends remained unharmed.

So he took Aurielle's file from the stack and re-read it; then he watched Aurielle, dodging monsters right and left, trying to survive in Purgatory. God had noted in the file and had also discussed with Bobby before He left His feelings of ambivalence about Aurielle. He had sent her to Purgatory as punishment for her acts against his Angels Gail and Castiel, but He had also felt sorry for her. She had been a good and dutiful Angel before Chuck and Metatron got their hands on her. Perhaps, if she had remorse for her actions, she could be so again. It was Bobby's call, God said.

So Bobby sent out the message to Aurielle to come to his office, releasing her from Purgatory temporarily. And while he was waiting for her arrival, he took another glance at the convention, and was appalled to see Crowley talking to Metatron and Chuck, opening his jacket to reveal the Angel blade concealed within.

How the hell had this escalated so quickly? Last he'd seen, Crowley was still in Hell, drunk off his ass. Damn spinning plates.

But Aurielle had arrived at his office and there was no time, so Bobby had sent the nightmare to Gail as a caution. The intuition she'd had earlier in the day had been all her, but it had not been enough. He had no way to contact her or Cas on Angel Radio at the moment, of course. He now deeply regretted having sent them to the convention, but the prophecies had foretold that it should be so, and God had sternly cautioned Bobby against doing anything to radically alter the events that were about to unfold.

So for the time being, he would continue doing the job. There was a knock on the door, and he told Aurielle to come in.

Aurielle had been washing her face in a stream when she got the call from Bobby. Heaven was calling, at last! Could she go back?

She was quite unhinged by now. Her mind had been damaged to begin with, and after Chuck had manipulated her, and after who knew how long fighting monsters and constantly watching her back in Purgatory, Aurielle had cracked. The fantasy world she had spun involving herself and Castiel had been the only thing that had sustained her, preventing her from just giving up and letting the monsters take her. As a result, the fantasy became the reality in her mind, and she vowed that if and when she ever got out of here, she would do anything it took to prove her love for him.

And now Heaven was calling, and here she stood in Bobby's office.

He introduced himself as God, and since she'd been a lower-ranking Angel, Aurielle had never met the real God and didn't know the difference. Not that she cared. He was God to her, and she was determined to stay here. It would be a vital first step in her campaign.

Aurielle was crazy now, it was true, but she was crazy like a fox. As Bobby asked her his very pointed questions about what she'd done and how she felt about it now, Aurielle knew he was looking for remorse, and she put on the act of her life. So she made herself weep, using the motivation of thinking about spending eternity in Purgatory and never seeing her dear Castiel again. She said that she knew that what she'd done was beyond wrong. She had allowed herself to be duped by two evil Angels and if she could take it all back, she would. Thank God she had been stopped in time. But she would still spend the rest of her days regretting her actions, and would do anything God asked of her to try in some small way to atone for them.

Bobby sat back in his chair, regarding her closely. She did seem genuinely penitent, but he had read the file and the prophecies and had been a little disturbed by how easily this woman had been turned from an innocuous, invisible clerk to a person who was ready to torture and kill a fellow Angel. And she had almost done it, too. God had seemed to think that redemption was possible for Aurielle. But did Bobby think so?

Cas and Gail woke to the sound of knocking on the door. They looked at each other quizzically.

"Just a minute!" Gail called out, and hopped out of bed, searching for something to put on. She looked in the direction of the door. They'd put on the Do Not Disturb last night. She pulled her nightshirt out of her overnight bag and put it on. "Who is it?" she asked.

"It's Dean," came the answer.

Gail looked at Cas, rolling her eyes. He had been in the act of putting his pants on in a hurry and now slowed down.

She marched to the door and opened it. "What's with the rude awakening?" she asked Dean, annoyed. She'd wanted a few more minutes of cuddle time, at the very least.

Dean strode into the room. "Last day in Vegas," he announced. "We've gotta make the most of it." He looked at Cas, who was bare-chested, just fastening his pants. "Let's go, Cas. Chop chop."

Really? Gail looked at Dean, then at Cas, then at Dean again. Dean stood there smiling, oblivious to what he may or may not have interrupted.

"Next time, use the phone," Cas growled. He too was irritated at the intrusion. Dean had the rest of his life to be human; Cas and Gail only had today.

Dean looked a bit taken aback at that, then he looked at Gail again. She raised her eyebrows and made a gesture as if to say Come on, Dean.

Dean was momentarily flustered. Right. He was so used to thinking of his friends as Angels who didn't sleep, let alone do anything else, that in his eagerness to wring the most out of his last day of vacation, he'd forgotten it was also their last day.

Dean flushed. "Sorry, guys," he said. "Should I just - " he gestured to the door.

Cas and Gail looked at each other and they both sighed. "It's OK, Dean," Gail told him. He looked so chagrined that she had to smile. "I do want a shower, though," she continued. "how about we meet you and Sam at the buffet in about..." she looked at Cas once more, who gave her an almost imperceptible shrug, "...half an hour?"

"OK," Dean said, rushing to the door. Now he seemed to be in just as much of a hurry to leave as he'd been to get his friends going a moment ago.

Once Dean had gone, Cas walked over to Gail and said, "That's OK, we'll have tonight." She smiled and kissed him. Their kiss held for a moment, then she turned away reluctantly and headed for her shower.

An image of Gail crying after her nightmare of last night popped unbidden into Cas's head then, and he shook his head as if to clear it from the thought. Why would he be thinking about that now? It was a brand new day, and he was determined to enjoy it.

Metatron was dressing at about the same time as his most hated enemy, and he stashed the Angel blade Crowley had given him the night before in his jacket pocket.

Crowley had taken Chuck and Metatron outside the hotel the previous night after accosting them in the concourse at the convention. He did not want to be overheard.

Chuck was sweating bullets. Metatron and Crowley, the two most evil beings he knew, putting their heads together, suddenly acting like allies. And here he was, part of the conspiracy. At least, they were under the impression that he was on their side, and that was fortunate, as they were allowing him to live for the time being.

Metatron had told Crowley, "If you give me the Angel blade, I can use it on the Angels." He was practically salivating, so eager was he to obtain Castiel's Grace.

"And why would I give you a weapon?" Crowley had asked coldly but quite logically. In fact, he was very interested in the offer. Why dirty his own hands and risk exposure, not to mention put his own life on the line? He saw no reason to inform Metatron of his suspicions regarding Gail's superpowers, for lack of a better term. If she were to kill Metatron in retaliation, Metatron would just end up back in Hell, under Crowley's purview. And then he would have definitive proof of her power, and Crowley could retreat back into his lair to contemplate his next move.

Now that Metatron had in essence confirmed that he currently possessed no Angelic powers, Crowley was not in the least worried about supplying him with an Angel blade, at least on a temporary basis. Crowley could take care of him with a mere wave of his hand if he had no powers. However, he had to make at least a token protest.

Metatron regarded Crowley, following his logic. "I'm not looking for any trouble," he said carefully, respecting Crowley's considerable power. "After I take care of our mutual enemy, I'll walk away. You have my word."

Crowley laughed shortly. "So I'm just supposed to take your word that you won't inhale all that Angel power and then run me through with my own blade before you disappear?"

Metatron was agitated. Crowley was no fool, and Metatron would have said the same thing if the situation were reversed. What to do, what to say to convince Crowley that he was sincere? Then he had it.

"I'll hand the blade to Chuck after Castiel is dead," Metatron told Crowley.

Crap, Chuck thought. He hadn't wanted to get caught up in their evil web. But he was stuck now. Maybe he could figure out a way to warn the Angels before it was too late.

However, for now, Chuck had to maintain his facade, so he agreed to take the blade from Metatron and give it back to Crowley once the deed was done. Crowley was satisfied with this arrangement; Chuck was a flea he could crush with his little finger if he chose. In fact, he might just do that anyway once Chuck returned the blade. No one would miss him.

Of course, there would be the not-too-small matter of Metatron, running around loose with Castiel's Grace and formidable powers inside of him if Gail failed to do him in. But that didn't really alarm Crowley, either. Metatron had no beef with Hell, not really; he couldn't wait to get out of there, could he? He thought himself above Demons and Hell, though bhis recent sins had certainly warranted God's placement of him there. No, Metatron was only a danger to Angels and humans, and Crowley had zero problem with that. In fact...

"I'll loan you the blade," Crowley had told Metatron, "under one condition."

Metatron eyed Crowley warily. "Which is?" he asked.

"That you send me as many souls as possible," Crowley replied.

And then they were actually shaking hands. Chuck couldn't believe it. Hadn't he heard an expression once about shaking hands with the Devil? Although who was the Devil in this situation, Chuck was sure he didn't know.

Sam and Dean were already seated when Cas and Gail walked in.

"Let's go, boys, I'm starving!" Gail greeted them. It was her last day of being human and she wanted to live it to the fullest.

They visited the buffet twice, and when they were all seated again with full plates for the second time, Sam said to Gail, "What would you like to do today?"

She paused, a forkful of food halfway to her mouth, and looked at Sam, then at Dean. Then she put the fork back down on her plate.

"I don't know," Gail said, "I don't think you guys have ever asked me that before." She was teasing, of course, looking at the brothers with mock innocence.

Dean rolled his eyes. "I know what you're gonna say. Clothes shopping."

"No. Supernatural convention," Sam said. Dean groaned.

"Nope," Gail said. She'd had a sudden inspiration. She took Cas's hand. "We're going to ditch you two smartasses for a couple of hours." She stood up from the table, pulling Cas to his feet. He looked surprised, but went with it, dropping his napkin on the table. "We'll meet you at the bar at, say...noonish."

She and Cas left the restaurant then, Gail relishing the surprised looks on the brothers' faces.

"Where are we going?" Cas asked Gail, bemused, letting her lead him by the hand through the casino.

"I just thought of someplace you might really like," she answered him. "Somewhere really fitting for our last day in Vegas."

He wondered what she could be talking about. He hoped it wasn't someplace really busy or noisy; Cas had had just about enough sensory input. When they got home he was going to sit quietly for about a month.

But this was Gail, and anyplace she wanted to go, he would go.

They walked out into the morning sun and down the Strip until they came to yet another hotel and casino. Cas was puzzled. What was so different about this place?

But Gail led and he followed, and they walked through the casino and outdoors again, coming to a ticket booth. "Two, please," Gail said to the attendant, taking some money out of her purse.

Then they walked down a ramp and through a set of gates, and Cas was transfixed. Suddenly they were in a lush tropical setting, with large cages all around a cobblestone walkway. There were all kinds of varieties of large cats in the cages, sunning themselves and yawning.

"What is this place?" Cas asked in astonishment.

"It's a secret garden," Gail replied enigmatically.

They walked around hand in hand, looking at the magnificent creatures. As if sensing who the couple were, or would be at the same time tomorrow, the big cats approached them calmly, almost as if looking to be petted.

Then, when they had visited all the animals, Gail sat down on a bench in the middle of the garden and Cas joined her. They sat quietly, listening to the sound of the gentle breeze blowing through the palm trees and the occasional low rumble coming from one of the cages. It was still early enough in the day that there were hardly any people there, and those that did walk by did not linger.

Cas was stunned, not only by the beauty and serenity of the place, but that Gail would bring him here now. This place was just what he'd needed. She sat quietly beside him, feeling the breeze on her face. Cas took her hand and she looked at him.

"Thank you," he said. She smiled, but said nothing. Gail was enjoying the serenity too.

They sat there companionably for a while; then more people started to come and the quiet was broken, so they stood and walked out of the garden to go meet their friends.

After some deliberation, Bobby decided to give Aurielle her second chance. If God had thought her worthy of rehabilitation, who was he to think otherwise? And she'd said all the right things to convince him that she was truly remorseful.

So he informed Aurielle that she could stay in Heaven, and assigned her to the same department she'd been working in before Chuck had gotten his hooks into her.

Aurielle was elated. She knelt on the floor in front of his desk and said, "Thank You, my Father," bowing her head in supplication.

Really? Bobby thought. Yes, he was God, but this was ridiculous. What was he supposed to do now?

So he asked her to rise, and when she did, he said, "Keep your nose clean."

Aurielle looked at him with the same puzzled expression that Cas used to get, and Bobby almost laughed out loud. But he was God, and he was trying to be stern, so he said, "You can go now."

She left the office without another word.

Once Aurielle had gone, Bobby was free to let go with the chuckle he'd been suppressing. He'd have to see if he could get Kevin to cobble together a dictionary of slang expressions and circulate it through Heaven. Maybe get Cas to teach a class.

Cas! He'd better check in and make sure things were still OK in Vegas.

Cas and Gail met Dean and Sam at the same bar they'd come to the first night they'd arrived.

Gail thought back to that night and smiled. It was unbelievable to her that this was their last day of holidays already. Where had the time gone? She looked at each of her companions in turn, reliving the moments along the way. Sleeping in the Winchesters' room the first night and Sam's stammering news about where the men had gone. Clothes shopping with Dean. And Cas, her dear sweet Cas. There were so many moments with him that she wanted to relive. She would have to settle for freezing them in her memory, each moment like a tiny crystal that she could bring out and look at when times became difficult. And she knew there would be challenges ahead. Crowley was still out there somewhere, and his continued existence was an affront, a black cloud above them.

But that was a thought for another day. She was with her three favourite men, and they still had today.

The quartet ordered drinks and when they came, Gail lifted her glass. "A toast," she said. "To one hell of a holiday."

They all clinked glasses and drank, smiling at each other.

But Cas had something he wanted to do before it got too much later. He rose and walked around Sam to where Dean sat.

"Can you come with me somewhere?" he asked Dean quietly. "I need your help."

Dean looked at his drink, which was nearly empty. He had been about to order another; it was his last day in Vegas, after all. But then he looked back at Cas and shrugged.

"OK, Cas," he said, resigned. "Sure."

Cas walked back to Gail and said, "Dean and I have an errand we need to run," he told her. "We'll be back soon. Are you and Sam OK to wait here for a bit?"

She looked at him, curious, but didn't ask. If he wanted her to know where he and Dean were going, he'd tell her. She wasn't worried.

Then Gail looked at Sam, who smiled at her. "Fine with me," he said.

"Yeah, we'll get drunk together," Gail teased. "I'm the only one who hasn't been drunk on this trip."

Cas winced inwardly, remembering how awful he had felt that first morning. He knew she was only joking, but he couldn't imagine seeing Gail in that state. But he'd decided this morning that this was going to be her day; whatever she wanted to do, he would go along for the ride. They had so little time left. That was why he had asked the Winchesters this morning at breakfast when Gail had been away from the table to go along with anything she suggested today, and they had agreed.

So he kissed her and said he'd see her shortly, and he and Dean left the bar.

Gail and Sam ordered another drink. In truth, she was feeling a bit tipsy from the first one. She wasn't used to drinking so early in the day, but this was her last day of holidays and she wanted to let her hair down a little.

Well into her second drink, she grinned at Sam. "Now I'M having my Vegas experience," she said to him. "Getting drunk in the early afternoon."

He grinned back at her. "Well, you've gambled, and now you're getting drunk. You might as well get all your sinning in now."

Gail lifted her glass to him. "Yeah, and I have technically slept with two men on this holiday, too," she said, then clapped a hand over her mouth as if she'd accidentally divulged a secret. Oh, who was she kidding? It wasn't as if her and Cas's sexual relationship was a secret to the brothers now.

Sam was puzzled, and a little startled. "Two men?" he asked her.

"I slept with you the first night, remember?" she teased, nudging him.

Sam smiled. Frankly, he'd almost forgotten about that. Like Gail, he felt like that night was so long ago in a way, although their holiday had gone by so fast.

"Oh, yeah," he said. "I guess technically, that's true." He lifted his glass in toast. "At least, that's what we'll tell people, anyway."

"Works for me," Gail grinned, taking another drink. "Dean can suck it."

Sam nearly snorted his drink out of his nose. He liked this girl a lot. He liked her as an Angel, but she and Cas had been a lot of fun to watch as humans. He would kind of miss that.

"What are you going to miss the most about being human?" Sam asked Gail.

She thought for a second. "Do you want the Angelic answer, or the non-Angelic answer?" she said mischeviously.

Sam grinned. What the hell. "Both," he replied.

"Well, I should think the non-Angelic answer would be obvious," Gail said, arching her eyebrows.

Sam laughed and threw up his hands. "OK, OK. No need for details."

"I wasn't going to offer any," she retorted, but she was still smiling. "Suffice it to say that Cas and I are very happy."

Sam lifted his glass. "To you and Cas."

Gail clinked glasses, then said, "Speaking of which, I forgot to ask you: did you have a nice time with Helen at the pool yesterday?"

Sam sighed. "Yeah, but..."

"But what?"

"But she's a nice young girl who I'll never see again," Sam said.

Gail looked closely at him. "Do you WANT to see her again?"

"Yes," he answered, then: "No. I don't know." He struggled to articulate how he felt. Did he feel an attraction to Helen just because he was lonely? She was a pretty girl, but there were lots of pretty girls around. Maybe it was her innocent quality that he found appealing. With all the ugliness and horror that Sam had seen in his life, he was drawn to women who needed protection, he guessed. Who needed him. That was probably why he and Gail had formed their bond way back when they'd first met.

But Helen was also a bit ditzy, and seemed to be a bit of a "Supernatural" groupie. Sam wasn't sure he wanted to deal with that.

"Were you planning on us going to the convention this afternoon?" Sam asked Gail. He was remembering Cas's request this morning to go along with whatever Gail wanted to do today. Truthfully, the brothers both thought that was only fair, especially as they'd had their "boys' night" that first night. As long as she didn't want to do anything too girly, Dean had said.

But this was the second time today Sam had mentioned the convention, and Gail looked at him speculatively. Maybe he was more interested in Helen than he was letting on.

She'd been considering the convention during her and Cas's quiet time in the garden this morning. Gail was extremely ambivalent about it now. On the one hand, it was a weird place, and she'd had such negative feelings both times she'd been there. On the other hand, Bobby had wanted the four of them to go for some mysterious reason, and though they had gone yesterday, nothing of significance had happened. Now Sam seemed to be leaning towards going again. She remembered that the actors who played Sam and Dean were going to be there today, and that tipped the scales for her.

So she said, "Yeah, Sam, I think we should go." Was it her imagination, or did his face brighten up? Gail sighed. "Now if we can only convince Dean."

Dean and Cas were in the shopping concourse, moving from store to store.

Shopping again, Dean thought impatiently. Lord help him. If it had been anybody but Cas, he would have said no.

But Cas had said, "I want to buy Gail something special. A souvenir. Something to remember our first holiday by."

How could Dean say no when Cas had to go and put it like that? So he'd asked what Cas wanted to get, but of course Cas had no idea. That was why he'd brought Dean.

But they had come up empty. Dean had no idea what they should get for Gail, either. He might tease her about it, but truthfully, she wasn't really a "girly" girl. Dean thought she was more like one of the guys, to a certain extent. Look how she'd stepped aside and let Cas hang around with him and Sam that first night. Most women Dean knew wouldn't have, or wouldn't have been so cool about it the next morning. She didn't really fit into any category of woman that Dean knew.

So after they'd been to a number of stores, Dean said, "Look, I have no idea what to suggest here." Nothing he'd pointed out to Cas had seemed appropriate, or special enough, or good enough. Dean looked at his watch. "We've been gone a while, and we're coming up with zero. Maybe we should just call it and go back."

Cas was frustrated. He'd wanted to do something special for Gail, get her something that would show her how much these past few days had meant to him. How much she meant to him. But he'd seen nothing that would even come close. Besides, Dean was right; they had been gone a while now and the day was growing shorter.

"Thanks for coming with me anyway, Dean," he said.

"Don't worry about it." Dean smiled at him. "I have the feeling Gail won't have any trouble remembering this trip."

Cas smiled in return. He guessed Dean was right about that.

When the men returned to the bar, Sam and Gail were laughing.

"What's so funny?" Cas asked Gail, putting his arm around her and kissing her on the cheek.

She smiled at him, then looked back at Sam. "You had to be there," she said, and Sam gave her a wink. Gail was glad the men were back, but she'd been enjoying Sam's company. She always had.

Becky was staking out the convention, watching for Gail and her friends. No, check that: Dean, Castiel and Sam. Now that she knew who they really were, Becky was on pins and needles, waiting for them to show up. Oh, please God, let them show up. This was her second chance with Sam, and she meant to take advantage of it. She looked at her watch again. The actors who played Sam and Dean were due to be on stage in just over an hour. The Winchesters would have to come and see that, wouldn't they? If it were Becky, she'd be too curious not to come.

Gail was feeling pretty light-headed by now and figured she'd better stop drinking before she got out of hand. Although quite frankly, going to the Supernatural convention with a buzz on was seeming like a pretty good idea to her. The place was so strange, so surreal that it almost made sense.

Speaking of which...she'd better get to the business at hand. So Gail broached the subject of the convention. She received the expected groan from Dean, and silence from Cas.

But this time, Sam backed her up, stating that he wanted to go, too. "Just think, 'we're' going to be there, Dean," Sam said in an effort to sway his brother. "I'm curious to see how much better-looking than them we are."

Now that Sam was on board, Dean gave in, sighing heavily. At least the stupid thing was only an hour.

Like the others, Dean had been wondering why Bobby had wanted them to go. Was this just one of Bobby's jokes? It had been really strange there, disconcerting. And to see himself represented in the person who would take the stage today would be the icing on the cake of freakin' surrealism. But there had to be more to it than that, didn't there?

So they slowly made their way to the convention.

Gail had another impulse, one that came straight out of the blue. She let go of Cas's hand and said, "You and Sam go ahead. I want a moment with Dean."

Cas's brow furrowed slightly, but he nodded. "OK." He walked on ahead and said, "Come on, Sam."

Gail had caught up to Dean and she nudged him. "Can I have a minute?" she said to him.

He looked a bit surprised, but hung back as Sam and Cas kept going.

Gail wasn't sure what she wanted to say to Dean, only that she'd wanted a moment alone with him, just the two of them. She'd spent a lot more time with his brother than with him during all the time she'd known the Winchesters, but Gail had some fond memories of past times with Dean, too. That time he had set her straight in Dallas sprang to mind. She'd been on her high horse, so mad at Castiel, ready to throw away the best thing that had ever happened to her with both hands. Dean had been there for her then, knocking some sense into her head with his humour and his honesty. They gave each other a hard time sometimes, but she knew by now that he didn't needle anyone he didn't care about. And she loved him too, and it suddenly seemed very important to her that she let him know.

"It's been a great holiday, hasn't it?" Gail said to Dean.

Okay, he thought. Yeah, it had, but why had she stopped him there just to say that?

"Yeah, it has," Dean agreed. Then, since she wasn't saying anything else, he said, "What's up, Gail?"

"I don't know," she answered honestly. What WAS up with her? She was the only one who had wanted to go to the convention, and now she was hanging back. Why?

"I just wanted to tell you something," she said to Dean. He raised his eyebrows, waiting expectantly. Oh, the hell with it. "I love you, Dean. You and Sam both. I just wanted to say that."

She put her arms around him and he returned the hug, surprised. Gail held onto him and he said, "OK, Gail. Yeah. We love you too."

She pulled out of the hug and Dean chucked her under the chin. "Let's go get this stupid thing over with," he said. "Then we can go get drunk."

Gail laughed. "I don't know if that would be such a great idea. Remember how you and Cas felt Friday morning? It wasn't pretty," she teased.

"Yeah, but you guys will be Angels tomorrow morning, and Angels don't get hangovers, right?" He might have a point there. "Sammy and I will deal."

Gail smiled at that, and Dean added, "Don't worry, we'll get you back to your room before sunrise. Guess I owe you and Cas one for this morning," he finished sheepishly.

She hit him lightly on the arm, being playful. "You kinda do."

They both laughed then, and started walking again.

Chuck and Metatron were running late, and Metatron was not happy about it. Chuck had arranged to meet him in the bar about 45 minutes ago and was just showing up now.

"I'm sorry, I just lost track of time," Chuck apologized. This was a lie, of course. He had spent all morning looking for the Angels and the Winchesters, any one of them would do, but had come up empty. He had to warn them. If Chuck hoped for redemption, he had to foil Metatron's plan. But how was he going to let them know they were in mortal danger if he couldn't locate them? The old Chuck would have just bailed then, when he had the chance. Actually, the old Chuck would have wielded the blade himself, he thought ruefully. But as badly as he wanted to escape Metatron's and Crowley's clutches, Chuck had bravely kept his appointment. Maybe he could still do something to help his former enemies. He had to at least try.

Metatron was fuming. He'd wanted to get to the convention concourse much earlier, to survey all the people before the stage show started. He needed to strike soon or the opportunity might be lost. If he hadn't promised Crowley he would hand the blade to Chuck once he'd killed Castiel, he could have gone ahead without him. But stolen Grace or no stolen Grace, he had no desire to screw with Crowley. The King of Hell never forgave and he never forgot, and Metatron wanted nothing further to do with Hell, or with Demons. He just wanted to kill Gail and Castiel and then go on his merry way. He hadn't actually mentioned killing Gail to Crowley, but what would Crowley care? One less Angel could only be a good thing, right? Metatron wouldn't really need her once he had Castiel's Grace, she would just be a top-up. But the bitch had killed him, and he wanted his revenge.

Becky saw Sam and Castiel enter the concourse, and she hurried over to them.

"Hi!" she said, a bit breathlessly. Then she stopped and took a couple of breaths. She was so excited she felt she might hyperventilate.

"Hi, Helen," Sam said. "You remember Gail's friend - " he stopped himself. Wow, he'd almost introduced him as Cas. They hadn't thought to make up names for themselves.

Sam needn't have worried. Becky was far too excited to realize they hadn't introduced themselves. She and Sam had spent all that time at the pool together yesterday and he had not once said his name. Most girls would have found that strange, but Becky of course knew who they really were. Maybe the fact that she had not asked his name should have been a red flag to Sam, but he was on holidays and it seemed as if his brain was too.

"Hi," Becky said to Cas. He briefly smiled at her but said nothing. He was still thinking about Gail and her odd request to talk to Dean alone. The timing of it seemed strange to him.

"Where are Gail and...your other friend?" Becky asked Sam.

"They'll be here in a minute," Sam replied.

"Good, because the show's about to start," Becky said.

On cue, Gail and Dean walked up to them then. Cas reclaimed Gail's hand and looked at her inquiringly but she gave him a small shake of her head as if to say Forget it, it's nothing.

The announcement came for the start of the show then, and the crowd started filing into the auditorium. Gail and Cas started to follow the crowd, but she had gotten another impulse. After all, she may not get another chance; the men would likely want to leave as soon as the stage show was over.

So she said to them, "You guys go ahead, I'll be right in." She released Cas's hand and turned back to the concourse. He stared after her and his brow furrowed again. What now?

But Dean put his hand on Cas's shoulder and said, "Come on, let's get this over with," and Cas allowed Dean to propel him into the auditorium.

Becky was torn. She started to follow Sam, but stood there, indecisive. Why was Gail leaving? What was she going to do that could possibly be so important right now? Was she going to the ladies' room? Actually, Becky kind of had to go, too. She'd been here since the place opened and had been so excited at the prospect of seeing Sam that she'd neglected that little detail. Normally, she wouldn't have dreamed of leaving just as the show was about to start, but now that she had the real Sam, or at least knew where he was, she decided to follow Gail. She'd never really had a close girlfriend before, and she thought her chances with Sam would improve if she befriended Castiel's girlfriend. Imagine, an Angel having a human girlfriend! Becky giggled inwardly. She knew of a lot of Cas-obsessed girls that would be very glad to hear that was possible.

Gail had made up her mind; she wanted to buy a souvenir for each of her companions. She walked over to the table where she'd seen the pictures of the actors and picked out her favourite photos, one of each. This would be too funny. Maybe she wouldn't even wait for Christmas.

Once she'd paid for her purchase and put the pictures in a bag the vendor gave her, Gail turned to go into the auditorium, but something made her turn around again. She had seen Dean examining the model of his Impala and she really wanted to get it for him. So she walked over to the table where they'd seen it.

Becky had come out to the nearly deserted concourse then, and she saw Gail pick up the model of the Impala and examine it. Gail's back was to her, so she called out, "Gail!"

Metatron and Chuck were just entering the concourse at that moment. Metatron was hurrying ahead of Chuck. He'd seen that the concourse was nearly deserted and he was furious. If his targets were here at the convention, they were likely seated in the auditorium with the rest of the crowd. Damn Chuck! He'd now have to wait until the show was over and scrutinize the crowd filing out to see if they had even come.

But when Becky called out Gail's name, Metatron turned to his right and wonder of wonders, there she was, the bitch that had murdered him. She was standing all alone, with her back to him. He would prefer Castiel, but he would take her first. Grace was Grace. And now that he'd seen Gail, he knew that Castiel would be here somewhere, likely not too far.

So Metatron withdrew the Angel blade from his inside jacket pocket and ran forward. Chuck yelled, "Gail! Look out!", but before she could turn around towards the sound of Chuck's warning, Metatron had driven the blade deep into Gail's back.

Becky saw the look of surprise on Gail's face as Gail dropped to her knees. The car model of Dean's Impala went flying out of Gail's hand across the room, and Becky began to scream.

"Oh," Gail said once she felt the blade enter her back. At first it just felt like someone had pushed her firmly from behind. She fell to her knees and the car went flying out of her hand. Then, the pain in her back. What the hell? Her mind flashed back to her training session, when Castiel had stabbed her in the chest. This was starting to feel exactly like that.

She'd heard Helen call her name and had turned around to look at the girl when she'd felt it. Then, a man's voice behind her, calling her by name, telling her to look out. But it had been too late.

Then Helen was screaming, and Gail was finding it hard to breathe through the pain.

Metatron withdrew the blade from Gail's back and she crumpled to the ground. He leaned down and rolled her body over roughly, looking to inhale her Grace, and...nothing. Where was it? The essence should be issuing from her body now. He took the blade and stabbed her viciously in the stomach. She was bleeding copiously now, but still no Grace. What the hell was going on?

Becky was shocked to the core. She couldn't move, she could barely breathe, all she could do was scream.

But then, when the man rolled Gail over and stabbed her in the stomach, Becky's paralysis broke and she ran into the darkened auditorium, screaming, "Sam!"

But the actors who played Sam and Dean on the TV show were onstage, and her cry went unnoticed; the crowd thought she was just another enthusiastic fan. So Becky threw caution to the wind and screamed, "Castiel! Gail's been stabbed!"

A number of people turned around to look at Becky then. She couldn't see their expressions in the dark and they couldn't see hers, but a couple of the girls said, "Shut up!"

Becky was frantic now and started running wildly towards the front of the room, where she knew the men would be seated. But Castiel had heard her cry, and he leaped out of his seat and ran towards her, the Winchesters right behind.

"Come quick!" Becky said. She was crying now. "He's killing her!"

Panicked, the men burst through the doors of the auditorium into the concourse and saw a man that none of them recognized kneeling over Gail, an Angel blade in his hand, dripping with her blood. And Castiel lost his mind.

Chuck had given himself away with his attempt to warn Gail anyway, so he had nothing more to lose at this point. He was rushing forward to grab Metatron from behind when three things happened simultaneously:

The Winchesters and Castiel came bursting out of the auditorium.

Becky saw him and said, "Chuck?!"

And Crowley appeared in front of Metatron, seizing the Angel blade from his ally's hand. "You killed the wrong bloody Angel," Crowley snarled, and stabbed Metatron in the chest.

\- 5 - Early Seating

Gail lay dying on the concourse floor. She might have survived from the first stab wound if she had received medical attention quickly, but when Metatron stabbed her for the second time, she began to bleed out.

Castiel was kneeling above her, crying silently. This was all his fault. They had received the signs. He should have never let her out of his sight. Gail opened her mouth to speak to him, assure him everything would be all right, but she had no breath and could not form the words. Tears leaked out of her eyes. It was breaking her heart to see him cry. Gail wanted to tell him not to be sad. The initial pain she'd felt was now gone, and she just felt very sleepy. She would take a quick nap, and when she woke up, she'd feel better. Maybe this was all just a dream, a continuation of the dream she'd been having when she'd been wandering around in the dark. Her vision was growing dark now, and Castiel's face was fading. I love you, she thought. I'll see you in the morning.

Dean had dropped to his knees on Gail's other side, across from Cas, and was checking Gail for vital signs. It looked like she was barely breathing. He put his hand on her neck to check for a pulse but he couldn't find one. He lay his head on her chest, listening for her heartbeat. There was blood, so much blood, coming out of her torso and pooling on the floor around her. Gail couldn't be dead, it was impossible. Just minutes ago they were sharing a hug and she was teasing him like she always did. There was no way she could be dead. He just couldn't accept it.

Crowley was advancing on Castiel with the Angel blade in his hand. Now that Gail was lost to him, thanks to Metatron, he was enraged. He'd deal with Metatron in Hell later, but right now he was going to kill the right Angel himself and make sure it was done.

Chuck saw his chance at atonement and he took it. He stepped in between Crowley and Castiel, and in the bravest and most selfless moment he'd ever had, Chuck said to Crowley, "I can't let you kill my Brother."

"Really?" Crowley said, and stabbed Chuck in the chest with the Angel blade. He withdrew the blade immediately and tossed Chuck's body aside.

"Chuck!" Becky screamed. She had been standing beside Sam at the foot of Gail's body, watching Dean's efforts to revive her new friend, when she saw Crowley stab her ex-boyfriend. And now Crowley was advancing, blade still in hand. Thinking he was coming for Sam, Becky ran up to Crowley and he stabbed her too, just on general principles.

Bobby watched the entire scene in amazement. It was turning into a damn bloodbath down there. God had made it clear to him that these events needed to unfold, but even Bobby, a veteran Hunter, couldn't believe the carnage.

He remained on edge though, ready to step in at any time if either Winchester was attacked. But so far, they had been ignored. Strange. It looked like Crowley was the only remaining party to be concerned about, though. The King of Hell had conveniently dispatched both Metatron and Chuck, removing them from the equasion, at least in terms of the current situation. Bobby had been taken aback by Chuck's bravery and apparent selflessness in attempting to protect Castiel, though. That went against everything Bobby knew and had heard about Chuck. He made a mental note to review Chuck's file when this balls-up was all over, see if he'd missed anything.

In the meantime, there was Crowley to worry about. He had almost reached where Castiel knelt in front of Gail's body, but still Bobby did not intervene. Crowley's next action would determine Bobby's.

Castiel had broken. He was not an Angel, he was a human who had just watched the woman he loved die, knowing there was nothing he could do about it, and he was inconsolable. Totally oblivious to anything that was going on around him, he stared down at Gail, hoping against hope that she would open her eyes and begin to breathe again.

Dean had also temporarily taken leave of his senses. Stunned into inaction by Gail's death, he could only kneel there and watch Cas cry over her body as tears stung in his own eyes.

Sam realized they had checked out, and it was time for him to take action. So when Crowley neared Castiel and began to raise the Angel blade, Sam charged Crowley and tackled him to the ground, and the blade flew out of Crowley's hand.

Sam had also been upset to see Gail die and to see Cas and his brother so heartbroken, but he'd had an idea. Once he had Crowley on the ground, he shouted in Crowley's face: "you're wasting your time, you son of a bitch! He's human!"

Too surprised by the sudden attack to retaliate, and too shocked by what Sam said, Crowley blurted out, "What?"

"He's human!" Sam repeated. "They're both human!"

Crowley thought Sam was crazy; then he remembered Castiel not being able to sense his or Metatron's presence, and Metatron leaning over Gail with an angry, frustrated look on his face. There had been no essence coming out of Gail as she lay dying. No Grace. If she were human, there wouldn't be, would there? Then he believed. If he had gone ahead and stabbed Castiel with the Angel blade, it would ultimately have been pointless.

So he disappeared from the scene, just winked out from underneath Sam.

Sam got up and grabbed the Angel blade, not wanting to risk leaving it lying on the floor. There was no one else in the room except for a couple of stunned vendors, who were wondering if what they'd just seen was an elaborate Supernatural skit. It had to have been, though why it would be taking place here with everyone in the auditorium, they didn't know. Maybe it was a rehearsal.

Sam looked around the room. It was as deserted as it was ever going to be, and now was the time to make the call.

"Bobby!" he yelled. "We need you!"

Bobby had of course seen Sam neutralize Crowley and take the weapon, and he was also impressed with Sam's acuity in saying what he'd said to the King of Hell. Atta boy, Bobby thought.

But if he was going to act, he'd better do it fast. There were only a handful of humans in the room now and it was time to do some damage control.

So Bobby appeared in the concourse, and he moved quickly from vendor to vendor, modifying their memories so they would have no recollection of what they had seen here. Then he froze time for a few minutes so that no one else would enter the room and then Bobby turned to his friends.

"I can't even send you guys on holidays without all hell breaking loose, can I?" Bobby said.

Dean and Cas looked up at him. Cas said, "What did you say?"

Unbelievably, Bobby was smiling! The love of Cas's life had just been murdered in cold blood, and Bobby was smiling?!

Cas got up and walked over to where Bobby was. "Do you see anything here that is even remotely amusing?" Cas asked Bobby. His blood was boiling. In his grief and anger, he only saw Bobby standing in front of him, and Cas was going to wipe that smile off his face.

Now Dean sprang into action. Cas was losing it and Dean had to help him. He was about to punch out God. So Dean got up and stood between them. He was angry at Bobby too, though. What he'd said was incredibly insensitive, and the fact that he was smiling both hurt and puzzled Dean. What the hell was wrong with Bobby? Dean had known him for a long time; Bobby wasn't a dick. So why was he acting like one? Maybe he should just let Cas go. What was the punishment for beating the crap out of God?

Bobby knew what Dean and Cas were thinking, of course, and he couldn't blame them. Time to clue them in before one of them really did punch him.

Bobby's smile vanished and he said, "I'm sorry, Cas. But Sam's figured it out and I thought you would have, too."

Cas's patience was paper-thin. "Figured WHAT out?" he said quietly, levelling Bobby with a look that almost made Bobby take a step back.

"Gail was human when she was killed," Bobby explained hastily. "So all he did was return Gail to Angel status slightly ahead of schedule."

Dean was stunned. He looked at Sam, who was now smiling as Bobby had been. Sam had gotten the idea just before tackling Crowley. An Angel blade could finish an Angel for good, but it just worked as a knife on humans. And if an Angel was killed who had been given a temporary disposition by God to be a human, wouldn't that Angel just return to being an Angel?

Sam hadn't known if his theory was right, but he hadn't had time to analyze it further. What if he was wrong? So he'd tackled Crowley out of sheer desperation and said what he'd said hoping it was the truth. Clearly, Crowley had bought it, and that was paramount at that moment because he'd vanished then and they were rid of him.

Cas felt like he was going to faint. He was still human, and his body and his emotions had been through so much stress in the past few minutes. He actually swayed on his feet as the impact of what Bobby said hit him.

He glanced at Gail's body on the floor but that hurt too much; then he looked at Dean and Sam, who had moved up to stand beside Dean. Then he looked at Bobby. "So...she's alive?" he said hesitantly, wanting to believe, afraid to believe.

"Yep," Bobby replied, feeling safe enough now to smile again. "She's just waking up in the Garden."

Sam and Dean exchanged glances. They remembered when they'd died, wandering around in Heaven's holding area until Cas came to get them. Huge grins broke out on their faces.

Cas felt like he was going to cry again, this time with relief. His body started to shake. "Thank you, Bobby," Cas said, and because he was human, he gave Bobby a big hug. Then Cas hugged each Winchester brother in turn.

"So, Cas, you had enough of being human?" Bobby asked him.

"Yes!" Cas answered him, breaking into a grin.

Bobby put his hand on Cas's forehead then, and the white glow appeared for a moment, then disappeared.

Cas turned to the brothers. "We'll see you back at the bunker tomorrow. Oh," he continued, reaching into his pocket and pulling out his hotel key. "Can you take our things back home for us?"

Dean took the key from him, then Cas glanced back down at Gail's body again. He could look at her vessel now that he knew they would be reunited in a minute. "And could you take Gail's purse, too? There's a picture in there I know she'll want."

"Sure, Cas," Sam replied, picking up Gail's purse and the bag with the photos that lay beside her. It was so weird to see her dead body lying there but to know that they were going to see her tomorrow, alive and well. He was so relieved.

"I've got to warn you about one thing before you go, Cas," Bobby said.

Cas looked at him, alarmed. "What?"

Bobby smiled. "Is she ever pissed."

Cas disappeared to the sound of his friends' laughter.

Gail woke up on a bed of grass in the Garden. The spot was shaded by trees, and there was a slight breeze. For a moment she was completely disoriented. Was she in the secret garden with Cas?

She sat up and looked around, then suddenly remembered. Gail looked down at herself, but there was no blood and she was in no pain. Then she looked around once again, and she got it. She had died.

Gail thought back, trying to figure out exactly what had happened. She remembered holding the model of the Impala in her hand, about to buy it for Dean. Then Helen had called her name. Things got a bit fuzzy after that. A pushing sensation from behind, and a man's voice calling her name from that same direction. Realizing she'd been stabbed. Falling to the floor. A man's face above her, close to hers, almost as if he were trying to catch her exhaled breaths. The pain of being stabbed again. Then Cas's face, tears streaming down his cheeks, fading into black.

Who was the man who had killed her? Gail had no idea. She'd never seen him before. Why had he done it? Who the hell knew? But it was done.

Gail stood up and found that she could move easily, and she began to walk around, gauging her surroundings. She thought she had this figured out. This must be the same place that Sam and Dean had gone to when they had died, what Castiel had called Heaven's "waiting area". She supposed this meant she was back to square one. Was she an Angel again? Or did she have to wait for Castiel or another Angel to show up? Oh, wait; last she saw, Cas was still human, and he would be until sunrise tomorrow. How long had she been here?

She sighed. Well, there was nothing to do but wait. At least this was a lovely place. In some ways, it did remind her of the secret garden she had taken Cas to in Las Vegas.

Gail sat back down on the grass, using the time she had to think. Her first thought, as usual, was for Cas. He had been so upset. She'd hated to see him like that. Now that she realized he'd seen her die, Gail understood. She had had to watch him die in Crowley's den, and it had devastated her. Where was he now? She prayed that he would know that she was here, and she was all right.

But who had stabbed her, and why? She'd never seen the man before. Was he just some random maniac? She found that hard to believe; the coincidence would just be too wild. Had she been targeted?

This place was beautiful, and she was glad to be alive, but the more Gail thought about it, the angrier she got. Why on earth did Bobby send them to the stupid convention in the first place? Surely he didn't know things would turn out like this? But he was God now; wasn't he supposed to know this stuff? He had said that he was new to the job, but still...And here she had been, pushing to go to the convention, thinking that they were serving God, and for what? So she could be murdered by a madman? What the hell?

Was she being punished for something she'd done? Yes, she'd been in Las Vegas, but Bobby had sent the four of them there, and her own sins had been relatively minor. Except...oh, crap. Were she and Castiel being punished by Heaven for adding a sexual component to their relationship? No, that couldn't be it. Could it? Bobby wasn't a hardliner, and he was God.

She probably shouldn't be thinking about that, considering where she was, but Gail was upset that she and Cas had been cheated out of their last night together. Perhaps she was still part human now, because she couldn't help but feel regret that they hadn't had at least one more opportunity to express their love for each other in that way. Was that such a sin?

Gail got up then and started to pace with nervous energy. What was she supposed to do now? For perhaps the first time, she truly understood Dean's frustration with Angels, and with Heaven. She was all alone here and didn't know why. She had a head full of questions and there was no one to answer them.

Bobby had heard Gail's thoughts very distinctly, and he had understood. He would have been just as frustrated and pissed off if he'd been in her shoes. Unfortunately, he had no answers to give. God, the original God that was, had decreed that the events at the convention should unfold as they had. So Bobby had allowed Gail's murder, knowing that she would be all right in the end. But he himself had no clue what the point had been of it all.

So he had done what he could; he had released Castiel of the gift a day early and allowed him to go to her, because that was all he could do for the moment.

Castiel appeared to Gail in the Garden and she ran to him. They embraced, holding tightly onto each other, not letting go.

"I thought you were gone," he murmured into her hair, his voice cracking.

She was crying again, this time with happiness and relief.

Eventually, they separated enough to look at each other. He was touching her face, as if to make sure that she was real, that she was really there. Gail flashed back to her nightmare in Las Vegas, and the way she had touched him to make sure he was okay. Eerie how that dream had seemed to be an omen; they just hadn't realized it at the time.

"Am I an Angel again?" Gail asked him.

"Yes, we both are," Castiel replied. "Bobby has released us." Then he smiled. "And he warned me you were, umm...'pissed'. A direct quote."

"Not any more," she replied, hugging him again. "Not any more," she repeated.

"So, what now?" she asked him after a minute.

"We go home," Castiel said. He smiled again. "And we cuddle until the morning."

Gail laughed then, and she was still laughing as he took her hand and they vanished from the Garden.

Bobby looked down at the bodies and the blood, shaking his head. What a mess. A massacre, actually.

Dean was still trying to process the whole thing. Gail had been brutally murdered, but she was not dead, even though her poor vessel lay right in front of him on the floor, all mangled and bloody. Poor Cas had been crazy, out of his mind with grief, and so had Dean. How the hell had this been allowed to happen, and why? And friggin' Crowley, showing up like that out of the blue, killing the guy who had killed Gail. Guy was lucky to be dead; Cas and Dean would have happily tortured him for hours before killing him. Was he a Demon? He hadn't looked like one. Why had Crowley killed him? Dean remembered Crowley saying something to him right before he'd stabbed him, something about killing the wrong Angel. Had Crowley sent him here to kill Cas, like some kind of a hit man? None of it made any damn sense.

Sam was wondering the same things, and he was also wondering why they'd been sent here. What a nightmare. He remembered Helen yelling out the name "Chuck" when the bearded guy had been stabbed by Crowley, and as Sam looked down at the man's body, he realized how much he did actually resemble Chuck. And he'd said something to Crowley about not killing his "Brother" when Crowley was advancing on Cas. Was this Chuck?

Bobby could hear the brothers' thoughts, but he had a mess to deal with here and not much time to do it in. He looked down at Gail's body. God or no God, he felt as if he should apologize to both her and Cas the next time he saw them. Like his friends, Bobby wondered why God would have wanted them to come here only to experience that kind of trauma. He sighed, and waved his hand, cleaning away her body and all the blood.

He looked down at Metatron's body next, or the vessel Metatron had been using, at any rate. Bobby had known that Metatron and Chuck had escaped Hell, but he'd had no idea they would show up here; the prophecies had not mentioned that. Of course, they had been incomplete, frustratingly so. In a way, he now regretted not having told his friends that Metatron and Chuck were on the loose. But Gail was OK, and for some reason God had wanted these events to happen. Had God wanted Metatron and Chuck dead? If that was the case, though, there was no need for the Winchesters and Cas and Gail to have even been here, as it had been Crowley who had killed them. Had his friends been here as bait?

None of the four knew that it had actually been Metatron who had killed Gail. Bobby would definitely have to tell them, though. He could see Sam looking at Chuck's body, the wheels in his head spinning. Sam was already starting to put it together.

Bobby looked down at Metatron's body with disgust and waved his hand, sending him back to Hell, where he belonged. For a moment, Bobby had contemplated sending him back to Heaven's prison to finish out his sentence. Maybe look the other way for a minute and let Cas have a crack at him. But Metatron had already escaped from the prison once, and Bobby wanted to see Metatron burn for what he'd done to Heaven, and for what he'd done to Gail.

Then Bobby came to Becky's body. He knew who she really was, of course; he was God, after all. What he didn't know about, though, were her feelings of love for Sam and that she had been hoping to have a relationship with him. The subject of Becky had never come up when Bobby had been alive. Sam had been embarrassed over the whole thing, and Dean was the only one who knew that Becky had been stalking his brother. All Bobby knew was her true identity, that she'd been in Hell and that she too had escaped through the portal. Becky had been sent to Hell for committing the sin of suicide.

Bobby had read the ancient book in his office as part of his job training, and this was one of Heaven's laws that he happened to disagree with. He did not know the circumstances of her suicide, but he knew that many people who killed themselves did so because they were desperately unhappy in life, and he did not believe they deserved to go to Hell because of it. One of the many items on Bobby's To Do List was going to be a review of this process; in fact, he'd scheduled a meeting for this week with the Upper Echelon to discuss the issue. There were a few items he wanted to discuss, not the least of which was Xavier's visit to his office and the petition he'd brought. And this time Bobby would make damn sure Cas was at the meeting and knew what they'd been doing behind his back, and behind Bobby's.

So as he looked at Becky, Bobby felt compassion for her and sent her to Heaven's waiting area, where Gail had been minutes before. Becky could stay there until her fate was decided. Another wave of the hand.

Now, Chuck. What to do about him? That would have been an easy decision a short while ago, but when Bobby had seen Chuck basically sacrifice himself attempting to prevent Crowley from attacking Castiel, Bobby had reconsidered, and he was still on the fence now. He wanted to know what was going on with Chuck. The Vegas prophecies had mentioned something about a fallen Angel returning home. Bobby had naturally thought that part referred to Gail, but now, he wasn't so sure. Could Chuck possibly be redeemed, as Aurielle had been?

Bobby was new to the job, and though he had most of God's powers, he didn't have God's experience. Bobby had appeared to others in life to be hard-bitten and cynical, a real hardass, but he actually wanted to believe that most people were inherently good or could be, if they were given the opportunity to be. God had been more skeptical about humans, believing that they were born on the fence and could be tipped one way or the other. But then, God had created humans, and He was well aware that the most evil people tended to stay that way, while the most pious people could turn dark side if the right circumstances presented themselves.

Bobby was batting .500; he was right about Chuck, but he was very wrong about Aurielle. He would find this out later, much to his great regret.

In the meantime, though, Bobby sent Chuck to the Garden, as he'd sent Becky a few minutes prior. He needed time to decide what to do about Chuck. Maybe he'd pop in for a little conversation with both Chuck and Becky, find out where their heads were at. There would be time later.

But for now, Bobby's time here had run out. He bade Sam and Dean a good night, told them he'd see them tomorrow, and vanished.

After Bobby left, Dean looked at Sam and said, "Let's get the holy hell out of here." He wanted nothing more to do with this place, or these people. The next person that said the words "Supernatural convention" to him was going to get punched in the face.

He and Sam went to the bar they had been to with Cas and Gail, but it seemed weird, wrong somehow to be here without them. Dean had been very much looking forward to hoisting a few with Cas and Sam tonight, but especially with Gail. He had been touched by her impromptu hug this afternoon on the way to the convention, though the events that had happened shortly after made their conversation now feel slightly eerie, almost as if she'd been saying goodbye. Had she had a premonition about her own murder?

Dean also felt badly about having barged in on her and Cas this morning, especially now. He wished he could go back to this morning and take it back. Hell, he wished they could just have a do-over on the whole day. If he'd known what was going to happen, he never would have agreed to go to the convention. He would have held Gail down if necessary to prevent her from going. They should have just stayed here at the bar and gotten loaded. He had the feeling Gail would be a very fun drunk; Cas had certainly been. He looked at the two empty seats beside Sam. Thank God Gail was okay.

Sam was lost in thought, too. He was thinking about poor Helen and her murder at Crowley's hands. Sam didn't know the girl well, but it had been hard for him to witness. He would have to ask Bobby tomorrow what he knew about her. There had to be a lot more to the story than he and Dean were being told. Was that Chuck that Crowley had killed? If so, how did Helen know him, and why did Crowley kill her, too?

The other mystery, and the most important one, was: who was the man who had killed Gail, and why? Crowley had killed him too, saying he had killed the wrong Angel. These people all seemed to know each other, and Crowley had killed them all. Sam didn't like that fact one bit. While he was relieved beyond words that Gail was okay, obviously she and Cas were being targeted, and it was only the fact that they'd happened to be human this weekend that had saved them. Damn Crowley. He was a loathsome little cockroach that Sam should have crushed with his boot heel years ago. He'd be talking with Bobby about Crowley, too.

After just the one drink, the brothers called it. Vegas just didn't seem like much fun any more, not with their friends gone and after the grisly scene they'd just witnessed.

While the Winchesters were depressed, their Angel friends were happy. Castiel and Gail talked all night, excited to be reunited. Their separation had been brief but extremely traumatic, and Castiel did not want to let her out of his sight ever again.

They reminisced for hours, going back to the night they'd first met at the Winchesters' place.

Gail felt giddy, so glad to be alive and back home with him. "What was the first thing you noticed about me?" she asked him teasingly.

"Honestly?" he asked her.

She paused. This could go either way. "Sure, why not?"

"The first thing I noticed was the way you were looking at me," Castiel replied.

"Oh, and what way was that?" Gail smiled.

"As if you cared about me," he answered, and he was not smiling. Castiel recalled how low he had felt back then, how ill he'd been. They had been strangers, and Gail had been frantic about finding her brother, yet she had cared enough about Castiel to bring him the cure, and had insisted that he take it when he'd hesitated. They had been through so much since then, good and bad, together and apart, but he would never forget that Gail's first act towards him had been one of concern for his well-being.

Once they had returned here from the Garden, Gail had needed to talk about what had happened to her, and what Castiel had seen. The whole thing was such a mystery. Neither of them had recognized her assailant, but Castiel told her about the events that had taken place after she'd died, and Gail was amazed and more than a little sickened that Crowley seemed once again to be behind it all. After all this time, she didn't know why she should be surprised. Didn't it always come back to the King of Hell somehow?

She told Castiel how it had felt to be stabbed in the back, but carefully omitted her mental comparison to having been stabbed by Castiel himself in the training room. This was a joyful reunion, and she didn't want to spoil it by reminding him of that dark moment. But Gail did mention how her assailant had rolled her over and leaned down close, as if trying to inhale her expelled breath. Castiel looked at her sharply. An idea formed in his head when he heard that. This action sounded all too familiar. Had the man been trying to steal her Grace?

Castiel questioned her in detail about the incident, but Gail could shed no further light on the subject. She only remembered the pain of being stabbed again, and Helen screaming, and Castiel kneeling over her, crying. It had broken her heart to see him so upset, and she'd wanted to comfort him, but she'd been unable to speak, and then she'd died.

Now that everything had turned out OK, Gail was a little bemused to be describing her own murder. How many people could say that?

But Castiel wasn't at all amused, not even a little. He realized how close he'd come to losing her, and he was afraid. Crowley would find out that his attempt to murder Gail had failed, and he would come for her again. Let him try, Cas thought grimly. He would just have to make sure that he himself or at least one Winchester was with her at all times from now on. She might chafe at this a bit but he would give her no choice. He'd tie her down if he had to. There was no way he was going to alloow her to be exposed to that kind of danger ever again. His heart just couldn't take it.

Though they no longer had the need for sleep, both of them felt drained, emotionally wrung out from the events of earlier today. They had kept separate rooms in their apartment prior to the Vegas trip, but Castiel did not want to be apart from her any more. So he took her by the hand and led her to his room, where they laid down together on the bed that was there and cuddled until the morning, just as he'd promised her they would. He smiled to himself; this was not quite the activity he'd had planned for them tonight, but it would do. Considering the way things had almost turned out, it would do very well.

The next morning, Sam and Dean entered Cas and Gail's room and packed up their belongings. Dean smiled as he tossed Cas's clothes into his friend's bag. Dean had had his fill of shopping, but he had to admit that Cas had looked pretty good in them. Maybe Gail could persuade him to wear some of them sometimes, just for something different. He had a feeling Cas would do pretty much whatever Gail asked, especially right now. The poor guy; he'd been so destroyed when Gail died, and then so ecstatic when Bobby told them she still lived. If Gail asked him to lasso the moon for her, Cas would be out looking for a rope.

Sam was packing Gail's clothes for her. It felt strange to be handling them, especially her underwear, but he did it. They'd promised Cas, and Gail was their friend.

He hadn't looked in her purse, of course. He respected her privacy too much to do that. But Sam had peeked into the bag he'd picked up that had been lying on the floor next to her body. There were three pictures in it, one of each of the actors who played Castiel, Dean, and himself. Sam had smiled at that. She had obviously bought them just before...well, just before it had happened. What a sweet and funny thing to do.

The brothers made one more sweep of the room, then returned to their own room to pack. They'd been so excited to get here, and now they couldn't wait to leave.

Gail looked at the clock and saw that it was early afternoon already. She and Castiel had been here for hours, alternating between talking and laying together quietly, but as much as she'd enjoyed their closeness, she was getting restless. Sam and Dean were due back home shortly, and she wanted to be there to greet them.

Also, Bobby had said that he would be seeing them today, and she was hoping it would be sooner rather than later. There were still so many questions they needed answers to. Bobby had called himself a straight shooter; this was his chance to prove it, as far as she was concerned. More blasphemy probably, but she was still a little angry over what she and Castiel had gone through, and she was sure that Sam and Dean had been distressed by her death, as well. Cas had told her how frantic Dean had been when he'd been kneeling over her body, looking for any sign of life. She couldn't wait to see both brothers and hug the stuffing out of them. And she was looking forward to getting her things back, especially the pictures. She'd keep the one of her and Cas with her at all times, maybe prop it up on the nightstand beside his bed. She had a feeling they'd be spending a lot of time here in the evenings when they were home. He still had the majority of his poker winnings; he'd discovered them in his pocket last night and had tossed the money carelessly on the nightstand before laying down with her last night. Since Cas loved TV so much, she'd suggest they buy one and put it here in his room. Gail was pretty sure the idea would please him.

But right now, she wanted to go to the bunker.

They appeared in the library area a few minutes later. Sam and Dean were due to arrive any minute, so Gail strode over to the coffeemaker and put on a pot, thinking they'd probably want some when they got home. She certainly would have. She sighed. Next to her intimate relationship with Cas, she'd miss coffee most of all. But then she smiled. At least she'd get to enjoy both of those things once a year. She'd have to ask Bobby if the year's wait could be shortened just a little; maybe he could pro-rate the last half day they'd missed.

"What are you smiling about?" Castiel asked her gently.

She told him, and he smiled too. "Good idea," he said. He put his arms around her and kissed her on the lips. It was a chaste Angel kiss, but it was an expression of his love for her and it was something he vowed to do more often.

Sam and Dean walked in just then and Dean quipped, "Didn't you guys do enough making out in Vegas?"

Under normal circumstances, Gail would have fired back a rejoinder, but not right now. As Dean descended the stairs, Gail ran to the bottom of the staircase to wait for him. He dropped the bags he'd been carrying and opened his arms wide, and Gail flung herself into them.

"Thank God you're OK," Dean said, his voice ragged with emotion.

Gail clung to him for a moment, then when she began to pull out of the embrace, Dean surprised her by planting a soft kiss on her cheek. "I'm so glad to see you," he told her.

She was touched. What a sweetie pie. But this was Dean, and she couldn't let things get too melodramatic. So she smiled. "I should fake die more often, if I'm going to get a reception like that," she teased.

He rolled his eyes but did not smile. "Don't even joke about that," Dean said, his voice still shaky.

Gail had been hoping to make him smile, but maybe it was too soon to make that kind of joke, so she touched his face and said, "Sorry."

"Hey, where's my sugar?" Sam said from higher up the steps.

"Right down here," Gail said to him, and when Sam descended the steps, the same process was repeated. Sam held on to her tightly. Though he'd been the only one of the three men to have kept his head last night, Sam had been momentarily afraid that they'd lost Gail too, and he had to hold on for an extra minute now to make sure she was real.

The brothers went to their rooms to drop off their bags then, leaving their friends' bags in the library area. Gail went to her purse immediately and checked for the picture of her and Cas, relieved to see it was still there. She saw no reason it shouldn't have been, but she'd had to make sure. Then she saw the bag with the photos of the actors. She'd nearly forgotten about those. One of the guys must have picked it up off the floor. There was what appeared to be dried blood on the bag, and she stared at it with a morbid fascination. Was it hers? She shook off the thought and examined the photos inside, but they were OK, fortunately.

But she was a little disappointed that the surprise was now ruined. "I guess you guys saw these," she said to the brothers as they walked back into the room.

"Yeah, I peeked," Sam admitted.

"They were supposed to be presents for you guys," Gail lamented. "I thought it would be funny."

Silence. Any humour they may have derived from the convention a couple of days ago was now gone.

"Well, I like them, anyway," Gail said firmly.

Castiel felt badly for her, and he walked over to where she was and put his arms around her waist. "We'll frame them and hang them in the apartment, then," he smiled. Then he looked at the bag they'd been in and saw the blood on it and his smile vanished. Now that they were all back, it was time to get serious.

Bobby got the call from Cas on Angel Radio that the Winchesters were back at the bunker and they were looking forward to his imminent arrival. It was almost like a summons, and Bobby would ordinarily have been annoyed, but he supposed he did owe them some answers. At least, those that he could give, anyway. He had about a million things to do, but they would have to wait. Bobby sighed. Maybe he should get an assistant.

Bobby appeared in the bunker a moment later. The four of them were sitting around the table, ready for the meeting.

Bobby sat down and looked at them all. He could hear their thoughts, all jumbled together, in his head. Questions, confusion, with just a touch of resentment. He tried to block out their thoughts but the emotions connected with them were too strong, so he settled for turning the volume down. At least he had apparently learned how to do that.

Gail was going over the events leading up to her murder in her head, trying to decide which of the many questions she wanted to ask first. Seeing the pictures she'd bought had suddenly reminded her of the impulse she'd had to go back and get the model of the Impala for Dean. It had just occurred to her that if she hadn't gone back to get it, she would have been safely inside the auditorium when her killer entered the exhibition concourse. She'd better not say this out loud, though. She could tell that Dean felt badly enough about what had happened to her without bringing that up. But she wondered where that impulse had come from out of the blue. Surely not from Bobby?

He was looking at her, and he shook his head. Crap. Of course. Hadn't she learned by now? God could hear her thoughts, and there didn't seem to be a damn thing she could do about it. Maybe she should just think all of her questions and save her voice.

Bobby smiled slightly, but said nothing. He was really not trying to read her thoughts, he just couldn't help it. But he agreed with her about not sharing the information about her sudden impulse. Bobby could feel Dean's pain connected with Gail's murder as it was; Dean didn't need the extra guilt this revelation would have caused in him.

But Bobby was going to upset them all now, and it couldn't be helped. He needed to come clean about who Gail's assailant had really been.

"I know you're all wondering who the man was that attacked Gail," Bobby began, trying to lead up to the shocking news.

They all waited quietly for him to continue. They'd known Bobby knew more than he'd been letting on.

Bobby looked at Cas, apprehensive now. He shouldn't be scared; he was God. But Cas was gonna lose it as soon as he heard, and an angry Cas was intimidating to behold, whether in human or in Angel form. Bobby sighed.

"It was Metatron."

The Winchesters and Gail were stunned. She felt frozen, rooted to her chair by the shock. How could that be? She'd killed him herself! She'd stabbed him in the back with her Angel blade in Dallas. And she'd been stabbed in the back by her assailant...it all made sense now, in a strange way. His form of poetic justice, she supposed. She was sure Bobby was telling them the truth. But how was it even possible?

Castiel leaped out of his chair. "What?" he said to Bobby. As predicted, Cas was enraged. "But he's dead!"

Bobby winced inwardly, seeing the livid expression on Cas's face. There was something else there, too. Panic?

"God cast him into Hell when he died," Bobby explained, "and he and Chuck found Hell's portal to Earth and escaped."

Castiel cursed viciously, and began to pace the floor. Then he stopped suddenly and looked at Bobby again. "Did you know about this?"

Balls. Bobby tensed in his chair, getting ready to defend himself if necessary. He glanced at Dean and Sam, but they were sitting still, waiting expectantly for his answer, and they weren't going to like it. There would be no help there.

"Yes, I knew, Cas," he said wearily.

Cas walked over to Bobby and stood over him then, his eyes boring into Bobby's. "Then why didn't you tell us?" he asked. His tone was even, but his eyes were flashing.

"I had reasons," Bobby stammered.

Castiel continued to stare at Bobby, trying to rein in his temper. But it was very difficult. Bobby had known that Metatron and Chuck were on the loose, and he had not bothered to warn them? Metatron had stabbed Gail to death. What if she hadn't been human? What possible "reasons" could Bobby have had for keeping them in the dark? Godlike power or no, Bobby's reasons had better be damn good, or Cas was going to pulverize him.

"Sit down, Cas," Bobby barked. He'd heard all of that, and though it was totally expected, Cas was making him nervous. He didn't want to fight his friend, but Cas needed to stand down.

Gail could see the struggle Castiel was having with himself and she was afraid of what might happen if he did not calm down. So she got up from her chair and walked over to him, putting her hand on his arm.

"Please sit down, Castiel," she said, using her words deliberately. "Let's listen to what God has to say."

He wheeled on her, but his expression softened immediately. "Metatron killed you," he said amlost pleadingly.

"Yes, but I'm here, and I'm fine," she replied, taking his hand. "We need to hear this."

Castiel continued to look at her for a moment, then he let out a breath, suppressing his anger. He returned to his chair and sat down heavily. Gail gave his hand a squeeze and he favoured her with a thin smile. She returned to her own chair then but pulled it closer to his before sitting back down. Just in case.

Phew. Lucky Gail had stepped in, Dean thought. Lucky for Bobby, that was. He smirked inwardly. God or no, you didn't tug on Superman's cape. Or trenchcoat, as the case may be. He had not gotten in-between Bobby and Cas this time because Dean was pissed off, too. For the second time in as many days, Dean wondered if this job was changing Bobby's personality. Or maybe he had just been in Heaven too long. Bobby was keeping secrets from them, and Dean was fed up with it.

Sam didn't know what to make of this whole thing. All he knew was that Bobby was not going to leave here without giving them some straight answers. Metatron had attacked Gail and nearly succeeded in killing her, and then Crowley had suddenly shown up and gone after Cas. And what was Bobby doing about it?

Bobby took a deep breath and let it out. "I didn't want to tell you about Metatron and Chuck right before your vacation because I knew how upset you'd all be," he explained. "It was a bad call on my part and I apologize. Especially to you, Gail," Bobby continued, looking at her. "If I could, I would take it back. But the prophecies - "

"The prophecies?" Cas interrupted, not being able to help himself. "Chuck's prophecies?"

"Yes, Chuck's," Bobby confirmed. He was slightly irritated at the interruption but tried not to show it, not wanting to rile Cas up again. But he'd been speaking to Gail, and he meant to finish.

"Chuck's - and Kevin's - " giving Cas a pointed look " - prophecies foretold the four of you going to Las Vegas and attending that convention. And God told me before He left that everything had to happen the way it was meant to or he couldn't guarantee the outcome. I knew you'd be all right as long as you were a human when you were attacked, so I made both you and Cas humans for all 4 days of the convention, just to be sure you'd stay safe."

Gail didn't know what to say. She appreciated Bobby's efforts to keep her and Cas safe, but she didn't understand anything else he'd said. What were these prophecies he was talking about, and why were they so important? She remembered the stack of paper Chuck had brought into God's office that day. Castiel had burned it, if not at God's urging, then at least with His tacit approval. And what did Kevin have to do with it, another Angel who she'd heard about but never met?

Bobby told them about Kevin's visit to his office and the Vegas prophecies.

"I realize that doesn't clear anything up," Bobby told them. "I can't give you answers I don't have myself."

They all looked at each other. Great.

"I sent Metatron back to Hell," Bobby continued, then he risked a look at Cas. "I briefly considered bringing him back up to Heaven so you could have a little chat with him." Bobby's beard twitched.

"Oh, how I wish you had," Cas growled. But they were back on the same side now. Though Castiel was dissatisfied with Bobby's explanation, he understood who the enemy really was.

"Crowley has sealed the portal to Earth now, so there'll be no more escaping through it," Bobby assured them.

"And what about Crowley?" Sam asked Bobby. "Why did he just show up there and start killing people right and left? And why did he kill Helen?"

"He's the King of Hell, Sam," Bobby said with more than a little sarcasm.

But Sam wasn't going to let him off the hook that easily. "OK, how did Helen know Chuck, then?"

"Her name wasn't Helen, that was just the name of the vessel she'd taken. Her name was Becky," Bobby told him.

Becky! Becky? Chuck? Was that his Becky? Well, not "his" Becky, but...Sam was astounded. After their talk, he never heard from her again, and assumed she had moved on from him. Oh, she had moved on, all right.

Bobby hated to do it, but he told them all that Becky had also escaped from Hell, where she'd gone after having committed suicide. An innocent girl had been mentioned in the Vegas prophecies, one who would try to come to their aid, and that part could only be referring to her. He didn't think Crowley's murder of Becky had been deliberate, just a crime of opportunity. So Bobby had sent her to the Garden to wait, while he sorted out what to do with her.

"I've got a meeting scheduled with the Upper Echelon on that subject, and a few other important things," Bobby now told Castiel, "and I need you to be there."

Castiel sighed. He hated Upper Echelon meetings. Six long-serving, hardliner Angels and him. He was always the odd one out. He knew how Xavier and the others felt about him, and he strongly suspected that whichever way he voted on an item, they voted the opposite just out of sheer spite. He avoided those meetings whenever possible, but if Bobby needed him to be there, he would be. As angry as he'd been at Bobby over the last couple of days, Bobby was God now, and Castiel had pledged his loyalty. And, just as importantly, Bobby was his friend.

"Okay, let's get back to the subject," Dean said. "You guys can conduct your bureaucratic Angel crap on your own time." He was tired and cranky from the stresses of the past day, and he still didn't understand how any of this fit together. "What about Chuck?"

They weren't going to like this either, Bobby thought. "He's in the Garden, too," he told Dean.

"Why?" Sam asked. "Wasn't he in Hell with Metatron?"

"Yeah, but I'm not so sure about him any more," Bobby mused. "I think he's actually gone and reformed himself."

"What makes you think that?" Sam said, puzzled. Chuck was an evil douche, everyone knew that.

"The way he stood up to Crowley," Bobby answered. "Said he wouldn't let him kill Cas."

"Yeah, so what?" Dean scoffed. "That guy never does anything unless there's something in it for him."

"Maybe he wanted Crowley to kill him so he could go back to Hell and continue plotting with Metatron," Gail piped up.

Bobby looked at her, startled. He honestly had not thought of that. She was sharp. Maybe it was just as well that Chuck and Metatron were separated for the time being. But he had just sensed something in Chuck. He would get a clearer picture when he spoke to Chuck in person and was able to delve into his thoughts.

"We'll see," Bobby said enigmatically.

And that was about it for the debriefing. Bobby had given them all the answers he had. There was still more to be discussed, but now was not the time. They all looked tired, even the Angels, and he had given them enough to chew on for one day.

But before he left, Bobby asked to speak with each of the four individually. He took each one of them in turn into the kitchen for a private chat.

"What do you know about Becky?" Bobby asked Sam.

Sam was uncomfortable with the question. Ever since Bobby told them that she had committed suicide, Sam's insides had been gnawing at him. When had that happened, and why? Surely that had nothing to do with him or his rejection of her. He was no George Clooney. He wasn't even Dean. The thought that she would have committed suicide over him was ridiculous. Wasn't it?

So he shared his limited knowledge of Becky with Bobby, but didn't mention their conversation in the coffee shop, nor Becky's "stalking" of him, if you could even call it that. In that tendency that humans have not to think or speak ill of the dead, Sam told Bobby he didn't think she was a bad girl, rather just naive and a little ditzy. But last time he looked, those qualities didn't qualify one for eternal damnation.

Bobby smiled at that. Sam articulated exactly what he'd been thinking. He should talk to Sam more often when he had a hard decision to make; the boy was smart.

Then it was Dean's turn. As usual, Bobby cut right through the crap with Dean, knowing he didn't have the patience for it.

"So, are you still pissed at me?" Bobby asked him, his beard twitching.

Dean sighed. "I guess not. I'm too tired. I don't have the energy right now. Besides," a sly grin crept across his face, "if there's anybody that's pissed, it's our Angel buddy out there."

"Yeah, I know." Bobby sighed too. "Look, Dean, I'm just trying to do the best I can."

Dean looked at Bobby and saw that he was sincere. He was a little ashamed of his thoughts about Bobby earlier. His friend was trying to do God's job, and Dean knew that couldn't be easy. And he had always been there for them, both in life and right now. Bobby seemed as mystified as they were about the way things had gone at the convention, and he now confided in Dean, and only Dean, that he'd been afraid to intervene. Apparently, God had set up a lot of dominoes before He left and had hinted at disaster if Bobby were to touch the game board.

Dean appreciated Bobby's honesty and willingness to confide in him and his confidence in Bobby was renewed. He told Bobby he would help him in any way that he could.

"Just be straight with us, okay?" Dean said to him. "Whatever it is, we'll handle it."

Bobby smiled and shook Dean's hand, but he did not reply. He didn't want to make a promise he couldn't keep.

Bobby looked at Gail. She was sitting shyly, with her hands in her lap. The two of them had never talked alone, and they were still trying to get acquainted.

"Thanks for stepping in on my behalf earlier," Bobby said, smiling. "That boyfriend of yours has got quite the temper."

His humour disarmed her and she smiled in return. "Yeah, well..." She didn't quite know what to say. "He tends to get a little...protective, sometimes."

Bobby's face turned serious then. "I'm sorry about what you went through, Gail. I truly am."

"Thanks," she said. "I can't pretend I understand what it was all for, but I guess that's what faith is supposed to be all about, right?"

He was startled. He'd been thinking exactly the same thing when he'd decided to go with God's plan. For a moment, Bobby knew what it was like to be in her shoes and have your thoughts read. And speaking of which...

"I'll try to tone down the thought-reading thing," Bobby told her. "I'm still working on it. But I want you to know that I won't be upset by whatever you're thinking. I've always encouraged honesty among friends."

Gail smiled again, happy he thought of her as a friend. Despite what had happened to her, she thought the guys were being kind of hard on him. He had the world's hardest job, and he was new at it. She thought Bobby was doing the best he could, and he really seemed to care.

"Aside from the obvious, did you have a good holiday?" Bobby asked her.

"Yes, it was wonderful," Gail answered him. "Thanks for the gift." And because she was who she was, Gail quipped, "And the new outfits."

Bobby's eyes crinkled. "Do you mean yours, or Cas's?"

"Both," she replied. Then: "Mainly his."

They shared a laugh together, solidifying their new friendship. And in that spirit, Gail said, "Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure, Gail."

She was shy again. Was she really going to ask him this? But she really needed to know.

"When I was in the Garden, I was wondering if Cas and I were being punished," she said.

Bobby was surprised. "Whatever for?" he asked.

"We were..." she stammered. "We did..." Gail sighed, looking down at the floor. "We had an intimate relationship in Las Vegas."

Bobby almost laughed, but they were just establishing their friendship and he thought she might misunderstand.

"So what?" he said to her. "Why do you think I booked you a room together?"

She looked up at him then, and he smiled. "Look, it's none of my business. In fact, it's none of anybody's business. I was a human not all that long ago myself, you know," he said to Gail. "The hardliners may not agree, but I say live and let live. And life is meant to be lived. So they can go screw themselves."

Gail laughed at that. She couldn't help herself. No wonder the men liked Bobby so much.

They stood then, and Bobby asked her to tell Cas to come in. He'd saved the hardest one for the last.

Cas strode into the room, loaded for bear. "What are we going to do about Crowley? About Metatron?" he asked Bobby.

Do? What did he mean? "What is there TO do, Cas?" Bobby asked. He gestured for Cas to have a seat, but Cas was too agitated.

"We storm into Hell and kill them, that's what," Cas retorted. "And how about we bring Gail's brother back with us while we're at it?"

Bobby was dismayed. How human was Cas now? What he was suggesting was ridiculous.

"Sit down," Bobby said. "Get a grip."

Cas did sit then, but he leaned forward. "They can't be allowed to live," he insisted. "Not only for what they've already done. You know Gail will never be safe as long as those two continue to live."

Wincing slightly, knowing the wrath he was about to incur, Bobby said, "We can't mount a full-scale attack on Hell just to protect your girlfriend." He knew he was sounding like a son of a bitch, but he had to snap some sense back into Cas. He'd give Cas one punch if it made him feel better, but after that, Bobby would have to smite him. Just a little.

But thankfully, Cas sighed and sat back in his chair. "I know, Bobby," he said. "It's just...when I saw her lying there on the floor, bleeding..." his voice cracked, and Bobby saw with alarm that tears were forming in Cas's eyes. He had never seen Cas cry before, and Bobby didn't know if he could handle it. Suddenly he wanted angry Cas back.

Seeing the look on Bobby's face, Cas cleared his throat and blinked back the tears that had been threatening to come. The wellspring of emotions he'd felt in the past 24 hours made him wonder if there weren't still some human left in him.

"Look, I know how evil Crowley and Metatron are," Bobby told Cas, "but you know we can't just march into Hell and start kicking ass. And I already told you my hands are tied when it comes to Gail's brother."

They sat in silence for a moment, looking at each other. Bobby understood Cas's anger and frustration, he really did, but things did not work like that, and they both knew it.

"So what am I supposed to do now?" Cas said heavily.

"We'll figure something out," Bobby said vaguely. He had no clue; he'd just heard the Winchesters say it many times, and it always seemed to work out OK for them in the end.

"Will I see you at the meeting tomorrow morning?" Bobby asked Cas, bringing him finally around to the subject that Bobby had needed to speak to him about.

Cas sighed again. "Yes, I'll be there."

"I appreciate your support, Cas," Bobby said sincerely. "Xavier's got a bee in his bonnet, and he's got the others all on his side."

Then Bobby told Cas about Xavier's visit to his office and the signed petition, calling for Bobby's resignation.

Cas got angry again. Who the hell did those stuffed-shirt hardliners think they were? God Himself had given Bobby the job. Did they presume to think they were better judges of character than God? Yes, they probably did, those pious sacks of...

Bobby laughed, reading Cas's last thought. Yep, that about summed it up.

"So what are we looking at here, Bobby? Rebellion? Insubordination?" Cas asked him.

Bobby shrugged. "I don't really know. Xavier said they'd be in touch, but I think the best defense is a good offense. That's why I scheduled the meeting for when you got back. We have to talk about this. I was hoping to talk about some other things too; if we can get past the big one, which is that they want me gone."

"It doesn't matter what they want," Cas replied automatically.

Bobby frowned. "I'm not sure that's true. The last thing we need is an insurrection on our hands."

"So, what, you just step aside and let Xavier take over?" Cas shuddered inwardly. That would be a Heaven he would never want to see. If that happened, he'd have to turn in his membership card and buy a remote cottage with Gail somewhere. Xavier was the hardest of hardliners, a self-righteous prig who thought he had God's will all figured out. Xavier claimed he was not anti-human, yet he saw all humans as vastly inferior organisms and painted them all with the same brush. Xavier and the rest of the Upper Echelon did not approve of Castiel's mission on Earth. They thought it was beneath him. Not that he cared what Angels like that thought, not any more, but if Xavier was allowed to rise to power, Castiel's whole way of life would be jeopardized. If by some miracle he was allowed to remain on Earth, there was no way that Xavier and his ilk would sanction his living arrangements with Gail. Even though they'd been entirely chaste as Angels, the hardliners would put a stop to it. Well, there was absolutely no way he could be separated from her now. He didn't care what they did to him. He should whisper a few details about what he and Gail had done in the privacy of their room in Las Vegas in Xavier's ear, just to see the look on his face. Could Angels have strokes?

Cas smiled to himself. He'd have to remember to tell Gail that later; he was sure she would appreciate the humour. They'd need to rely on each other to get through this latest test, if it got to that point.

"I didn't say that," Bobby said. "Let's just have the meeting and go from there."

They shook hands, and Bobby disappeared back to Heaven.

Cas came back out to the library area. Gail already had her bags in hand and gave Cas his. He smiled at her and took her bags too, leaving her with just her purse.

"I take it you're ready to go," he said to her.

"Yeah, well, my fellas are tired," Gail replied, nodding towards Sam and Dean.

The brothers were indeed tired, and they'd had enough discussion for the day, so Gail walked up to each of them and gave him a kiss, then Cas grabbed her hand and they vanished.

\- 6 - Faro

It was only when Bobby got back to his office that he realized he'd fogotten to tell them about Aurielle and his decision to bring her back to Heaven, at least on a trial basis. Balls!

Then he shrugged. He'd be seeing Cas tomorrow and he'd tell him then, before the meeting.

Now that he was thinking of her, Bobby decided to check up on her, make sure she was OK and was adjusting to being back. Truth be told, he did not quite trust her yet. He had told her supervisor to report back to him with any sign of odd or suspicious behaviour on Aurielle's part, but still, he wanted to check in personally.

Bobby walked over to the area in which she worked, receiving some strange looks along the way. The Angels were not used to seeing God walking around the office freely, and they didn't know how to react. Many rose from their chairs and prostrated themselves on the floor as he passed, both amusing and alarming him. He got tired of saying "Please rise", and resolved to circulate a memo when he got back to his office, telling them to quit it. While respect was a very important part of his position, this was overdoing it.

Just as many Angels had not shown him any respect though, either staring at him with blank looks or, in a few cases, openly glaring at him. This worried Bobby a little. Though he'd known there would be an adjustment period, he thought back to his discussion with Cas about insurrection, and he wondered. He didn't want to be "that guy", the boss that everyone hated, but he intended to do the job his way. And if that pissed people off, too bad. But could you be a leader if no one wanted to follow you?

Aurielle looked up to see God walking into her cubicle. She felt a momentary stab of fear, then told herself to relax. She had only been here a short while and had been quietly working, that was all. She had asked for training on the computer, though. Computers in Heaven, imagine that! That had been one of Bobby's immediate innovations, and even though most of the Angels had never worked with them before, the newer and younger arrivals had helped their co-workers and they were all getting up to speed. Most of the Angels did think the computer made it easier to do their jobs once they'd figured it out, though predictably, the longer-serving Angels were suspicious of the technology, preferring to stick with quill pens and scrolls.

Bobby said, "How's it going, Aurielle? Are you settling in OK?"

So that was it, Aurielle thought. He's just checking in. Making sure I'm "keeping my nose clean", whatever that means. After she'd left his office that day she'd checked her nose but it seemed just fine. She'd have to look that up on Google.

"Yes, everything is fine," she answered him. "Thank you for the computers, by the way. I'm excited to learn about them."

Bobby smiled, pleased at her comment. He'd been proud of himself for that one. Heaven's methods had been ancient. Of course, considering that the place had been around since Creation, that was not surprising.

Aurielle had nothing more to say. She was determined not to appear too forward or aggressive, even though she was dying to know when Castiel would be in Heaven next. She had already found out that he had been a friend of Bobby's when Bobby had been a human on Earth, and the relationship continued to this day. So she'd better stay on Bobby's good side.

They chatted for another minute or two, then Bobby turned to leave just as Aurielle's supervisor was poking her head in Aurielle's cubicle.

"Oh, I'm glad I caught you," the supervisor said to Bobby. "The agendas are all printed up for the Upper Echelon meeting tomorrow morning. I was going to bring them to you."

Aurielle tried to remain calm, but her pulse quickened. Upper Echelon? Castiel was Upper Echelon; would he be here tomorrow?

"I made 8 copies," her supervisor continued. "That's what you wanted, right?"

Aurielle did the math. 7 Upper Echelon board members, plus God. Castiel was going to be there! Her mind began to spin, even as she concentrated on appearing calm on the outside. She would have to figure out a way to see him, even if only for a moment. But she'd better not freak out. Her obsession with him had gotten totally out of hand, but she still had enough presence of mind to know that she had to appear normal or else she would never get close to him ever again.

When Bobby got back to his office with the agendas in hand, he dropped them on his desk and sat down heavily in his chair. He supposed he should look at the schedule of tomorrow's meeting and organize his thoughts, but he just couldn't face it right now. What had Dean called it? "Bureaucratic Angel crap"? Boy, had he been right about that. But it was part of the job. He guessed this was what it was like to be the President. You were the ultimate boss, but sometimes you had to go through channels to get things done. He sighed. He'd rather be out in the field.

Speaking of which, he still had decisions to make. Bobby decided he would pop into the Garden, see how things were going there.

Becky had woken up in the Garden after her murder. Like Gail, she was lying on a bed of grass and, like Gail, she was very confused. But Becky remained confused as she wandered around aimlessly. Unlike Gail, she did not have any prior knowledge of this place.

Where was she? The last thing Becky remembered when she thought back on the chaotic scene at the convention was running towqards Crowley, fearing he was going to attack Sam. She knew who Crowley was from Chuck's books, and she had learned from the TV series what he looked like. He was the King of Hell, and Becky had told Gail that he was "kind of evil". She'd seen him stab the man who had stabbed Gail and had originally thought he was helping her friends. But then she had the shock of recognizing Chuck, and then saw Crowley stab him, too. But it looked like Chuck was with the man who had stabbed Gail, so maybe that was why Crowley had done it. Had Chuck gone evil after she broke up with him?

But then Crowley was advancing on her and her friends, still brandishing the blade, and Becky had started to panic. He may be funny sometimes, but he was the King of Hell for a reason, and she knew that the Winchesters and Castiel were his enemies.

So she had panicked and run up to Crowley. Now she wondered what the hell she'd been thinking, no pun intended. In her shocked and vulnerable state, she'd only wanted to prevent Sam and the others from coming to any harm. But she had been stupid to do that, and she had paid the price. Crowley had stabbed Becky for her trouble, and she could only surmise that she had died.

But this wasn't Hell, it was some kind of a forest, or something. Becky walked and walked, but she didn't see anyone or anything, just a stream. She went to the stream to wash her face and get a drink of water, then sat on a rock and tried to figure out what she was supposed to do now.

Bobby appeared to Becky, and she nearly fell off her perch in surprise.

"Sorry, Becky, I didn't mean to startle you," Bobby said to her.

She looked at the man in wonder. He was obviously not a human, as he'd just appeared to her out of thin air. But she was pretty sure he wasn't a Demon, either. He actually looked kind, and he was smiling.

Bobby sat down on another rock opposite Becky and looked at her calmly, wondering how to begin their conversation.

She saved him the trouble. "Where am I?" Becky asked him.

Bobby let out a breath and said, "You're in the Garden. It's a waiting area for Heaven."

Heaven! Becky couldn't believe it. Had there been some kind of mistake? Should she say something?

Bobby was reading her thoughts deliberately, wanting to figure out what type of person Becky was. He waited a moment to see what she would think next.

Becky was thinking that she'd better tell this man that there had been a mistake. She'd been in enough trouble as it was for the sin of killing herself; now that she seemed to be dead all over again, she didn't want to get off on the wrong foot.

So Becky looked at Bobby and said," I think there's been some kind of mistake."

He smied at her. Becky was being honest. That was one of his favourite qualities in a person. But he wanted to make sure, so he asked, "What do you mean?"

Who was this man? Becky wondered. He still hadn't introduced himself. But she was hardly in a position to be asking questions, so she answered his instead, hanging her head. "My name is Becky, not Helen. I think there might be some kind of mix-up."

And Bobby was convinced. This was an innocent young girl, and she was being honest with him about her true identity. She had been killed by Crowley for the crime of trying to protect his friends; and she had been sent to Hell originally for the perceived crime of suicide. And while Bobby thought that it was a shame to waste the potential of such a young life by means of suicide, he did not think it was necessarily a crime, or a sin. The ancient book in God's office said that suicide earned your soul a one-way ticket to Hell, do not pass Go, do not collect $200. But the book was also written at the time of Creation, and a lot of things had changed since then. Computers would never have been dreamed of back then, for instance, yet here they were now, being widely used in Heaven. Modern times called for modern methods and morals, and Bobby wanted to update Heaven's bylaws to reflect this, if he could. That was the big topic on his agenda for tomorrow's meeting. If he could get that far, that was. Bobby had the feeling that the hardliners were going to fight him every step of the way.

But that was tomorrow, and poor Becky was here now. He could see that she was very confused, but was too timid to ask him any questions. So Bobby introduced himself, and Becky's eyes grew as wide as saucers. Now she was really tongue-tied, but Bobby had compassion for her. She could be his daughter. In fact, as a prospective Angel, he supposed she sort of was.

Becky was looking both awed and terrified. so Bobby told her, "I'm God now, but I was a human not too long ago and I know how hard life can be sometimes." In actual fact, he had once been very close to committing suicide himself at a particularly low point in his life, though of course Bobby would not tell her that. Still, he could relate. Maybe that was why he had developed such a desire to get that particular law amended. "I don't think you're a bad person, Becky, you just made a bad choice."

She was looking at him with those wide eyes, still too awed by the fact that he was God to speak, so Bobby spoke again.

"My name was Bobby Singer in life. You can call me Bobby, dear."

And then Becky did fall off the rock.

Bobby rushed forward to help Becky up, mainly out of instinct.

She laughed nervously, brushing herself off once Bobby had her back on her feet again. "Thank you...Your Holiness?" Becky ventured.

Bobby couldn't help it; he threw his head back and laughed. His eyes were actually watering. Damn, that was good. "Bobby is fine," he told her, and returned to the rock he'd been sitting on, still chuckling. It had been a long, stressful day. He'd needed that.

Becky couldn't believe it. Bobby Singer, Sam and Dean's friend, was God?

She knew of Bobby from the books, of course, and when Chuck had killed off his character, she'd cried and cried. He was like a father to both brothers, and she'd liked him very much. And he was real, and he was God! She should have figured he was real, like Sam, Dean and Castiel were. And Crowley, she thought, shuddering inwardly. It didn't surprise her that much to find out Bobby was God; he'd guided the brothers through so much adversity in the books.

Becky liked Bobby already; he was being so kind to her, and he seemed so understanding. And he was Sam's friend! But was Sam lost to her now? She was in Heaven's waiting area after having been killed; did that make her an Angel now? And while she was overjoyed with not having gone back to Hell, if that was the case, how could she ever be Sam's girlfriend if she was up in Heaven being an Angel and he was down on Earth? But then she remembered Gail and Castiel. Becky of course had not known that they were both Angels who had happened to be human when she met them. She knew Castiel to be an Angel from the books, and Becky had just assumed that Gail was a human girl. So if those two could somehow make it work, why couldn't she and Sam, in reverse?

Bobby had decided. He liked this girl, and he thought Sam's description of her had been apt. Sweet, innocent, a little naive perhaps. He didn't want to see her here all alone just wandering around in the Garden. So he made what he rationalized as an executive decision. Didn't rank have its privileges?

So he extended his hand to her and said, "Come with me, dear. Let's get you to Heaven."

Bobby took Becky to Aurielle's supervisor's office.

Patricia looked up and said, "Hi, Bobby, what can I do for you?"

Bobby had liked Patricia upon meeting her. She was a longer-serving Angel, a practical woman who worked hard but was kind to the Angels in her charge. So he thought she would be the perfect woman with whom to leave Becky.

"I have a new Angel here," Bobby said to Patricia. "Do you have room for her on your staff?"

Patricia smiled. For him, she would make room. She liked Bobby, too. She thought he brought a lot to the High Office. He was pragmatic but approachable, something she thought was very important. She had respected and loved God as her Father, of course, but he had been distant, hands-off most of the time. She had a lot of ideas about how things could be improved here, but had never presumed to talk to God about them. Maybe when his schedule was a little easier, she would drop by Bobby's office.

"Of course, there's always room for one more," Patricia said, smiling at Becky. "Leave her with me, I'll get her sorted."

Becky smiled shyly at Bobby. "Thank you," she said to him.

"Good luck, Becky," Bobby said. He walked back towards his office, whistling a tune, then decided to call it a day. Tomorrow morning would come soon enough, and the meeting would be brutal. He had just broken one of the ancient rules, and he'd have to tell Castiel about Aurielle tomorrow. But he felt really good about what he had just done. That had been the high point of his day, and he wanted to quit while he was ahead.

Castiel and Gail were comparing notes on their individual meetings with Bobby.

Gail decided to keep the lighthearted comments about Castiel's having a temper and the joking about his new clothes between herself and Bobby for the time being. Castiel had been in such a glum mood since they'd gotten back from the bunker. She could understand why, but Gail didn't want him to be angry at Bobby any more and she thought the fact that she and Bobby had laughed about those things might somehow inflame him further. And while she wasn't thrilled by the fact that both Crowley and Metatron had been apparently gunning for them once again, it was what it was, as the expression went.

She did tell Castiel that Bobby had apologized to her, again, about the events at the convention, hoping to thaw his anger. But he didn't seem moved.

"As he should have," Castiel said stiffly.

She sighed. Fine. Maybe a little light humour would melt him. "Hey, how many people can say that God apologized to them twice in one day?"

Still nothing. She persisted, "Oh, and he told me he would try to stop reading my thoughts so much," she told Castiel, smiling. "He knows how much it freaks me out."

"He was reading mine," Castiel said, "unfortunately for him." He'd wanted to stay angry for a while, but one look at her and a smile was now tugging at the corners of his mouth.

"Ooh, you'd better watch it, that's blasphemy, isn't it?" Gail teased him.

Castiel looked away then, frowning again. "He'll get over it."

Wow. He really was in a mood. She put her hand on his arm. "He's doing the best he can, Cas," she said. "He called me his friend."

He looked back at her then and after a moment, he gave her a genuine smile.

"There you go," Gail quipped. And because he was smiling now, Gail ventured to tell him that she had told Bobby she'd wondered if she and Cas were being punished for their intimate relationship in Las Vegas.

He looked startled, but bristled at the notion. "I don't see what that would have to do with anything," he said. "That's nobody's business but ours."

"That's what Bobby said!" Gail exclaimed.

Castiel finally thawed towards Bobby then. That's what he would have expected his friend to say. But it was good to receive confirmation.

"In fact, he said if any hardliners had a problem with it, they could, and I quote Bobby here, 'go screw themselves'," Gail continued.

Castiel smiled again. That did sound just like Bobby. But the mention of the hardliners got him thinking about the meeting tomorrow and about Bobby's concerns, and his smile dissolved.

Gail misinterpreted his frown. She said, "You don't think what we did was wrong, do you?" She was a little worried about that. Though he'd been a bit more demonstrative since they'd come back as Angels as far as affectionate gestures went, Castiel had been an Angel since just about forever. She knew indoctrination sometimes ran deep. Had he allowed his human urges to get the better of him, only to regret it now?

But her concern was unfounded. He turned to face her and took both of her hands in his. "No, Gail. I don't want you to ever worry about that. I love you and I don't think there's anything wrong with what we did. In fact, I wish we could be doing it right now," he smiled, his eyes twinkling.

Gail laughed at what he said, and with relief. "Me too," she said mischeviously. "But come here and give me a hug. I'll take what I can get."

Castiel laughed then, and pulled her into his arms.

"Do you know how to use a computer?" Patricia asked Becky.

"Yes, of course," Becky replied.

Of course she would, Patricia chided herself. This girl must have been all of 22, she thought. All the young ones arriving these days were wizards at technology. She herself still felt comfort in using pen and paper, but Patricia thought it was good to learn new things. Kept you young at heart.

"Come with me, Becky," Patricia said. She rose from her chair and led Becky to Aurielle's cubicle, introducing them.

"You can show Aurielle the ins and outs of the computer," Patricia said to Becky, "and she'll train you on what we do here."

Becky smiled at Aurielle, and Aurielle smiled back.

"Well, I'll leave you two girls to get acquainted," Patricia said, returning to her office.

And they would. Fandom recognizes fandom. They had a lot to talk about.

After their lighthearted moment, Castiel turned serious again. He too wanted to share his discussion with Bobby, but he didn't mention his idea to storm into Hell and kill Metatron and Crowley and rescue her brother. He'd been shot down on both counts, and he did not want her to feel melancholy about Frank again so soon after they'd just gotten back from a mostly happy vacation. Except for the part about her murder, of course. But he did not want to dwell on that, it would drive him crazy.

Instead, he told her about Xavier's visit to Bobby's office and the petition signed by the rest of the Upper Echelon.

Gail was astounded. "Why don't they just give him a chance to at least show he can do the job?" She understood office politics to a certain extent, but this was ridiculous.

Castiel smiled gently, reminding himself that she was new to Heaven and had not really been exposed to many Angels there. So he tried to explain how Xavier and the rest of the hardliners still blamed him for The Fall.

"But that was Metatron's doing!" she excalimed. "You thought you were helping!"

He continued to smile at her naivete. "It doesn't matter to them," he tried to explain. "They've always looked down their noses at me. I admit, at times they've been right. As we both know, I strayed from the path more than a few times, and I've made enemies along the way." He looked her in the eyes, feeling anxious all of a sudden. "I'm not the safest person to be associated with in certain circles. Just ask Sam and Dean. I just don't want you to suffer because of it."

She looked back at him, feeling a great deal of sympathy for Castiel. Gail had known him for quite a while now and yet their struggles had been mostly about her. For the first time, she started to get a sense of how difficult it must be to be him. Yet he continued on stoically, always being a champion for her or the Winchesters, when he had his own problems. And still he was concerned about her.

"Bring it on," she said, faking a bravado she did not quite feel. She took his hand. "It's you and me and Sam and Dean against the world." She smiled, and couldn't resist adding, "And Heaven, and Hell, apparently."

He gave her a smile and a hug, but his smile quickly faded. She had no idea how bad things might get.

The next morning, Castiel was getting ready to leave for the meeting. He wished he could wear the suit and tie he had worn in Las Vegas. It was hanging in his closet now, and he looked at it, considering. But he rejected the notion. Those were his Earthly clothes, and the board would be expecting to see him in his customary attire. Since this was their first official meeting since Bobby had taken over, he didn't want to make waves. Not until he saw where their heads were at, anyway.

"I wish I could bring you with me," he said to Gail, taking her hands in his. "But under the circumstances..."

Gail nodded. She understood, of course. Besides, they may be in love, but they weren't joined at the hip. "That's OK, you've got business to attend to. Go kick some ass for Bobby." They both smiled, but Castiel's smile was strained. "I'll stay here and read a good book. And if there isn't one around, I'll steal some of your Vegas winnings and go out and buy one."

She had been trying to keep it light, knowing how concerned he was about the meeting. But he looked alarmed.

"No, I want you to go to the bunker and wait for me there," he said.

Gail sighed inwardly. She'd been afraid he would be like this. Not only was he afraid to let her go out by herself, now she couldn't even stay here by herself? What did he think, Metatron was going to pop out of the closet or something? But she realized that her murder was too fresh, and out of deference to Castiel's concern over Bobby and the meeting to come, she capitulated. But they would have to talk about this, soon.

"OK," Gail said, kissing him on the cheek. He looked relieved. "Let's go."

Cas had called him, so Dean knew to expect them, but he still started a bit when they appeared suddenly in the kitchen. He didn't care how long this had been going on, he'd never completely get used to it.

"Hey, Cas, hi Gail," Dean said in greeting.

Cas looked uptight and preoccupied this morning and he didn't smile at Dean as he usually did.

"I have to go," Cas said without preliminary. Yep, he was an Angel again, Dean thought. He missed human Cas.

"Break a leg," Dean said casually.

Castiel looked at him curiously.

"Really?" Dean said to him, and Gail laughed then, she just couldn't help it.

"It means good luck," she told Castiel, and kissed him on the cheek. "From me, too."

He looked somewhat mollified, but then disappeared without a word.

Gail looked at Dean, still smiling. "I think you hurt his feelings."

Dean smirked. "Help yourself to coffee," he said automatically, then said, "Oh, right, I forgot."

"That was below the belt," she retorted, sighing. "I think I'll miss coffee most of all."

"Really?" Dean said again, lifting his eyebrows.

"Shut up, Dean," Gail said, but she was smiling. She gestured to his cup. "Can I at least get you a refill, so I can smell it?"

As she took his cup, Dean said, "So what are you really doing here, Gail?" She looked at him sharply, so he hastily added, "Not that I'm not glad to see you."

She sighed, walking his cup over to the coffeemaker. "You're my babysitter." She poured him a cup and came back to the table, sitting down across from him.

Dean looked at her inquiringly.

"Cas is afraid to leave me alone," Gail told him. "I told him I might want to go out to a store this morning and he nearly had a heart attack."

Dean nodded. So that was it. He should have figured as much.

"Where's Sam?" Gail asked.

"He went to get some groceries," Dean answered. "When we got back, we were pretty much out of, well, everything."

Gail envied Sam. She was pretty much used to coming and going as she pleased, and even though she loved Castiel for his concern, she was already feeling a little frustrated.

Dean looked at her, understanding her unspoken frustration. He had spent many years now mainly on the road, only coming back here as a home base, and he knew how it must feel. In fact, now that they'd had a bit of R &amp; R, he was eager to get back on the road. He'd have to talk to Cas. He loved Gail like a sister now, but it was not his job to babysit her. He and Sam needed to be out there working cases. If Cas had some Angel crap to take care of, let him take care of it, but that wasn't Dean's problem.

Gail looked at Dean. She could sense that he was trying not to say something. "What's bothering you, Dean?"

He looked at her, startled. Then he remembered it was only Bobby who could read his thoughts now. But Gail had always been pretty perceptive, and he must have had a look on his face.

"You mean, besides the usual? Metatron? Chuck? Crowley?" he said.

"Yeah, besides that," she said calmly, taking a page out of Castiel's book. She sat quietly, waiting for an answer.

Dean sighed. "Sam and I need to go out there, work some cases."

So there it was. Gail had the feeling it might be something like that. Ever since she'd met the brothers, they'd mainly been spending their time preoccupied with her problems. And Cas's, too. And while they'd been big ones, she knew that Dean had been wanting to get back to what he and Sam did best.

"Well, then, you should go," she said simply.

"What about you and Cas?" Dean asked.

Gail paused. She'd actually been about to confide in him about Castiel's concerns about this morning's meeting, but that was "bureaucratic Angel crap", and she wasn't sure Dean would even want to hear about it or care. Yes, Bobby and Cas were his and Sam's friends, but Bobby was God and Castiel could take care of himself. Perhaps it was time to let go.

Metatron sat in the chair across from Crowley's desk.

Crowley glowered at him. He was still angry with Metatron for having killed Gail. More so after he'd found out she was a human. All the stupid git had done was return her to being an Angel. Of course, neither Metatron nor Crowley had known that she and Castiel had been humans. How could they? Metatron had thought he could steal their Grace, thereby restoring him to full power and then some. And Crowley had thought that the Angel blade would finish Castiel once and for all, as it should have had he been an Angel. He hadn't known Metatron was going to kill Gail, though; only Castiel's murder had been discussed. Metatron had gone off the playbook on that one. Crowley was still on the fence about Gail. He was still under the impression that she possessed the prodigious powers that he'd seen her display back in the den, and had been furiously trying to figure out how to harness those powers to his own advantage. As an Angel, she would normally have been off limits to him, but he'd been working on an idea. Lucifer had once been in Heaven at God's right hand, and he was now in a cage in a restricted area of Hell. If someone that exalted by God had fallen that far, could there not be a way?

But then Metatron had gone ahead and killed her, and he had not even gotten his precious Grace. What a waste. And she had been human, and so had Castiel! Imagine if he'd had an opportunity to get them both. Of course, even though they'd been in Las Vegas, he was sure they were so disgustingly pure they'd only committed the most minor of sins while being human. But still...

Crowley continued to glare at Metatron, but Metatron stared back at him defiantly. Ever since Bobby had sent Metatron back here, Crowley had had him on the torture rack, just on general principles. But Metatron had shown an intestinal fortitude Crowley didn't know he had, and even though he sat there with painful-looking welts all over his body, Metatron had not broken.

Metatron stared back at Crowley, determined not to speak first. His body and his mind were still screaming with the pain he'd endured, but he was not going to give in. He had nothing to apologize for. He had needed Grace, and he had seen an opportunity to get it. Crowley was a hypocrite. Like he would not have done the same.

Eventually, Metatron sighed inwardly. He would be forced to speak first, it seemed.

"Not that I mind being off the rack for a bit," Metatron said as casually as he could, "it actually stretches out my back. But, why am I here?"

Crowley continued to stare at him. He was actually starting to feel a little impressed. Most would be begging to be released from the torture by now, and Metatron was talking about it like it was a spa treatment. Lying, of course, but still...

"I've reconsidered," Crowley said, getting to the point at last, "and I've decided to let you off the hook about your, shall we say, lapse in judgment. I still think we could be allies."

Metatron perked up at this. "I'd like that very much." He had the list all prepared in his mind. "Who first?" he asked Crowley eagerly. "Castiel? Gail? Sam and Dean Winchester? Chuck?" He spat out the last name. He still couldn't believe Chuck had betrayed him like that.

Crowley leaned forward, his black eyes almost sparkling. "No. God."

Sam descended the stairs, arms loaded with bags of groceries. Gail and Dean had moved to the library area to await his arrival. Gail saw him struggling down the stairs with the groceries and jumped up to relieve him of a couple of the bags.

"Thanks, Dean," Sam said sarcastically. "What's up?" he said to Gail. "Where's Cas?"

She reminded him of the meeting while smiling to herself. She supposed that was the benchmark of being a couple; wherever you went, people asked you where the other one was. Well, she supposed there could be worse things.

"Come on, let's get these things into the kitchen," Gail said, leading the way.

When they got there and started to unload the groceries, Sam said, "So I take it you're here because Cas is freaking out about your safety."

She looked at him with a smile. "I always said you were the smartest one," Gail said, nodding.

Sam thought for a moment. "Is that what he said?"

"No, but he didn't have to, Sam," she replied. "It's pretty obvious. I mean, it's not like I don't love you guys, but you're not in the babysitting business and I'm not a baby."

"He's just concerned about you," Sam said. He knew how he'd feel in Cas's situation. "He wants to make sure you're safe. Especially after what happened."

Gail turned to face him. "I know that, Sam. I understand it, and I appreciate it. But I can't live my life in a glass case. Believe me, I'm not stupid. I know there are all kinds of threats out there. But I can't live my life that way," she repeated.

Sam understood her point. "We'll have to talk to Cas," he said.

But she'd made up her mind. This was between her and Castiel. It wasn't Sam and Dean's problem. So she said, "No. I'll talk to Castiel about it."

Gail had unconsciously said practically the same words she had said to Sam back in Dallas when she'd been so angry at Cas, and he wondered if there was going to be trouble between them again. Sam hoped not; they'd been so happy in Las Vegas.

But Gail wasn't mad, just a little frustrated. She was also worried about what was going on in the meeting. Again, she almost confided in Sam about Cas's concerns about Bobby, but instead she said, "Dean tells me you guys want to get back on the road."

Sam looked almost shamefaced. "Yeah, we kinda do."

"So, you should," she said to him.

"But what about you? And Cas?" Sam asked.

"What about us? We're grownups, you know. We'll be fine," she retorted.

Sam considered a moment, then said, "Well, it just so happens I came across a case in Georgia this morning. We were just going to have breakfast and then go check it out. We forgot about the meeting."

His face gave him away. Sam was as eager as Dean was to get back on the road. So Gail said, "Meeting, schmeeting. Bureaucratic Angel crap." She walked up to Sam and put her hand on his arm. "Go."

"What will you do?" Sam asked.

Gail sighed. "I suppose I'll go up to Heaven. I'm an Angel, after all, and I've hardly spent any time there. I'll wait for Cas to get out of the meeting and I'll tell him you guys had to go out on a case." She smiled. "Maybe they have a coffee room. So we can go in and smell it from time to time."

They shared a laugh, then she hugged Sam and he said, "But you call us if you need us."

"I will," she assured him. But he wouldn't really be able to do anything, and neither would Dean. These were Angel problems.

So she left Sam in the kitchen to finish putting away the groceries, and walked back to the library.

"Well, goodbye," she said to Dean.

He looked up at her. "Where are you going?" he asked.

"Heaven," she replied.

He looked at her inquiringly.

"Angel crap, you wouldn't be interested," Gail said airily. But she was starting to feel emotional. She and Castiel had spent so much time with the brothers since she'd met the men, and it was suddenly so hard to say goodbye.

Dean stood up from his chair and faced her. "Are you gonna be all right?"

Gail blinked back the tears that were suddenly forming. "Of course. I have an Angel on my shoulder," she quipped. Then she said, "And you know he'll never let anything happen to me."

Dean hugged her fiercely. She had always been closer to Sam, but Gail knew that deep down, Dean was the more emotional of the two. "We're only a phone call away," he said.

She pulled out of the embrace and touched his cheek.

"You and Sam take care of each other," Gail said to him.

"Always," Dean said.

"And you guys call us if you need us," she said. "Or at least, stay in touch." And, because she wanted to leave him smiling, Gail added, "I may need your help if Cas gets mad at Bobby again."

Dean did smile then, and that was how she wanted to see him last, so Gail vanished out of the bunker.

She reappeared in Heaven a moment later. Having never been elsewhere in Heaven, Gail went to the reception area outside God's office. But of course, Bobby and Castiel weren't there, they were at the meeting. So Gail asked the receptionist to let Castiel know that she was here, as soon as the opportunity presented itself. She didn't want him to pop into the bunker later and not find her there.

Gail considered just sitting here to wait, but she was curious, so she began to wander around the halls. The place looked like any other office she had seen in life, only much, much larger, and the halls and offices seemed to go on forever. Which kind of made sense, considering how many souls must be here. Wow. Gail felt small and a little insignificant when she stopped to consider it all.

She stopped to look at a notice board in one of the hallways. There were memos posted on it. She perused them, thinking: Did Heaven have a softball team? She smiled to herself.

Becky and Aurielle had become fast friends in a short time. Kindred spirits will usually find each other, and when Becky had talked about the circumstances that brought her here, Aurielle had been all ears. Becky was a little talkative for her taste, but when her new friend told Aurielle about the scene at the Supernatural convention, Aurielle's heart leaped in her chest.

Gail had been murdered? Did that mean Castiel was free?

She questioned Becky closely, wanting to hear and savour every detail. Becky just thought that her new friend was interested in her story. It was a pretty exciting story, and Becky had been dying to tell it to someone.

"I don't know for sure whether Gail was dead or not," Becky told Aurielle. "She looked like she might be, but Dean was checking her and then I got stabbed." Becky couldn't quite make herself say that she herself had been killed, it was just too weird. Even though everything had turned out OK.

Well, almost everything. Becky hoped Gail was OK, but it honestly hadn't looked good.

"Well, what do you think?" Aurielle persisted. Then she made herself take a breath. She was coming off a little crazy in her desire to know.

Becky frowned, seemingly oblivious. "Yeah, I think she probably died. That's too bad. I really liked her. And she and Castiel made such a sweet couple. They were always holding hands, and I saw him crying over her when she was on the floor."

Aurielle simultaneously felt nauseous and excited. A sweet couple? She didn't care what Becky thought, Aurielle knew that Gail wasn't the one for Castiel. She'd obviously been a bad influence on him. What were two Angels doing in Las Vegas, anyway? It was the unholiest of cities, as far as she'd heard. She could just bet that going there had been Gail's idea, and those Winchesters had been there too. What kind of awful sins had they been trying to expose her Castiel to? She knew he was above all that, of course, but she still seethed inwardly. And truth be told, she was more than a little jealous. If anyone should be holding Castiel's hand, it should be Aurielle.

But maybe that could still happen. Gail was dead now, wasn't she? And, she hated to acknowledge this, but Castiel would be heartbroken. Aurielle could console him, make him see that he didn't need that little tramp. Not when he could have a real Angel, a woman who would literally do anything for him.

Becky brightened up. She'd just had a sudden thought. "Maybe Gail's here, too," she said to Aurielle.

"What? What do you mean?" Aurielle asked, startled.

"Well, she was a good person. She would have to be, if she was Castiel's girlfriend. So maybe she's an Angel now, like us," Becky said cheerfully.

"But she already was an Angel," Aurielle blurted out.

Becky looked at Aurielle's face. Sometimes she was oblivious to things, but that had been a strange thing to say.

"Why would you say that?" Becky asked curiously. Then it dawned on her: "Do you know her?"

Aurielle was chagrined. Why had she gone and said that? But she couldn't think of anything fast enough, so she admitted, "Yes, I know her." Becky's mouth dropped open, so Aurielle continued, "Well, I don't KNOW her." You couldn't really count torturing a person and nearly killing them as knowing them, could you? "I just know OF her."

"So she was an Angel? I thought she was human. She and Castiel sure acted human, the way they were kissing," Becky said, giggling. Oh, well if Gail was already an Angel, she was obviously fine, Becky reasoned.

Aurielle felt another pang of nausea. She definitely didn't want to hear about Castiel and Gail kissing. And what did Becky mean by the way they were kissing?

But Becky obviously didn't get it. By the way she'd described the knife, it could only have been an Angel blade. And if an Angel was stabbed to death with an Angel blade, it was all over. But what did Becky mean about Gail and Castiel acting human? It was bugging her.

So Aurielle asked the question, even though she wasn't sure she wanted the answer: "What do you mean, the way they were kissing?"

Becky giggled again, glad to have a girlfriend to talk to about these kinds of things. She'd have to talk to Aurielle about Sam, maybe get some advice. "Well, one time when they didn't know I saw them, they were French kissing."

Aurielle looked at her, puzzled. What did that mean? So she asked Becky, and when Becky told her, Aurielle was shocked. Angels didn't kiss like that, ever. There was something weird going on. Had Gail put some kind of a spell on him? That could explain a lot of things.

Patricia poked her head into the cubicle. "Becky, would you mind posting this on the board for me?" she asked, holding a memo in her hand. "I'd do it myself, but I'm extremely late for a meeting in the opposite direction." Truth was, Patricia could have taken a moment to do it herself, but she'd heard the giggling coming down the hall and wanted to break up the gabfest. She wanted her workers to get along, but she didn't want production to suffer.

Becky jumped up and took the memo from Patricia, and went to do as her supervisor had asked. As she approached the notice board, she saw a female Angel standing there reading the memos, and as Becky neared, she recognized Gail.

"Gail!" she said excitedly, rushing up to greet her friend. "We were just talking about you!"

Gail turned to look at Becky. She flashed back to the night of the convention. "Helen?" The last time her name had been called by this girl, a knife had gone into her back. In a strange moment of deja vu, Gail almost looked behind her.

So Helen had obviously died, too. What had happened? She felt sorry for the girl, but here they both were in Heaven, so Gail supposed it was all right. She hoped Helen's family were doing OK, though. Such a young girl, way too young to die. Gail knew all too well how heartbreaking it was to lose a family member before their time.

Becky's face fell a bit. Though she was happy to see her friend, she felt bad about having lied to Gail about her own name. "It's Becky, actually," she admitted to Gail. "And it's a long story." She brightened up. "Have you got a minute?"

Gail smiled. "I've got more than a minute." Thank God for Helen...no, Becky. What was that all about? Well, she'd find out now. Becky had been a Godsend. Gail had been wondering what to do here while she had to wait out the meeting.

"Come on, we'll go to the break room," Becky said. "We can catch up in there." She'd been due for a break, and Patricia was at a meeting anyway. She considered going to get Aurielle, but Becky kind of wanted Gail to herself right now. Gail could tell her how Sam was doing.

Break room? Gail trailed behind Becky, bemused. Maybe they did have some coffee she could smell.

The meeting was not going well.

Castiel had shown up early that morning, looking uptight and edgy. Bobby had intended to tell him about Aurielle first thing, but one look at Cas and he decided against it. He knew Cas would be pissed off at him again, to say the very least; and considering what they were about to face, they'd better present a united front.

They walked to the conference room together and as Cas took the printed agendas from Bobby and distributed them in front of the empty seats around the table, Bobby sank heavily into the big chair at the end of it. He was glad it was almost time. Cas's nervousness was contagious, and Bobby just wanted to get this damn thing over with. Cas came to sit down in the chair at Bobby's right hand, and they looked at each other but said nothing.

A few minutes later, Xavier and the other five board members entered the room together, almost as if they'd met somewhere else first. Which they probably had, Bobby thought, sighing inwardly. He could already tell this was not going to go well.

As the other Angels took seats next to and across from Castiel, Xavier closed the door to the room and then pulled one of the chairs to the other end of the table and sat across from Bobby. He did not bother to pick up an agenda and bring it with him. He sat down and stared at Bobby. So, Bobby thought, it was going to be like that.

The other board members were alternating between looking at Bobby and looking at Castiel. Cas was pointedly ignoring their stares, flipping through the agenda even though he'd already looked at it.

Bobby cleared his throat. Might as well start out as professionally as possible. "Thank you all for coming here today. We have quite a bit to get through, so let's begin." He picked up his agenda and flipped to the first page and though the other board members did the same, Xavier did not. He didn't have one in front of him, and he didn't need one. As far as he was concerned, this whole meeting was pointless. He sat back in his chair, continuing to stare at Bobby.

Bobby had been about to bring up the first item for discussion, but he noticed what Xavier was doing and it was pissing him off. He looked across the table.

"Problem, Xavier?" Bobby asked him.

"Yes, I have several problems," Xavier replied stiffly. "I see our request for you to step down has been ignored."

Straight to the chase, Bobby thought. OK, let's dance, then.

"The vote was not unanimous, though, was it, Xavier?" Bobby said softly.

Xavier looked at Castiel. "He was unavailable when we voted. Both times."

Ignatius, another board member, piped up. "Yes, where were you, Brother Castiel? Why would you miss such important meetings?"

Castiel stirred uncomfortably in his seat. He hadn't known about the first meeting; he supposed they had conveniently forgotten to tell him. And it was very likely that he'd been in Las Vegas for the second meeting they'd apparently had, and he was sure as hell not going to tell them that. He looked at Bobby for guidance, but Bobby had nothing to offer and gave him a slight shrug.

But, somehow, Xavier already knew. He sneered at Castiel, then looked at Ignatius with a mockingly innocent expression. "Oh, didn't you know, Brother Ignatius? His job on Earth with the humans has been such a stress that he took a vacation." Cas looked at Xavier, startled. What did he know? HOW did he know? "To Las Vegas," Xavier finished, and the other board members gasped.

Ignatius looked back at Castiel. He could scarcely believe it. Unlike Xavier, Ignatius didn't harbour any particular resentment towards Castiel. He actually felt sorry for his Brother sometimes, especially when Ignatius sat in closed meetings and had to listen to all the vitriol directed towards Castiel. And having to work with humans all the time would be stressful, Ignatius thought. He might feel the need for a vacation himself under those circumstances. But Las Vegas? The most sinful city in the world?

Castiel glared back at Xavier, but he said nothing. There was nothing he could say, really.

But Xavier was not finished, not by a long shot. "And our new - boss - sent him there, along with his human friends, and his little Angel girlfriend."

Crap, Bobby thought. Did Xavier have psychic powers, or was there a mole in the organization? He didn't feel one bit sorry about letting his friends have their holiday, they'd definitely earned it. But this looked bad, and he knew it. Nothing to do but brazen it out.

That is, unless Cas took out his blade and killed Xavier with it. The way he was looking at Xavier, it looked like Cas was considering it. Despite the seriousness of the situation, Bobby felt like grinning. At least it wasn't him on the receiving end of one of those looks for a change.

Castiel wasn't contemplating murder just yet, but he was angry. It was one thing for Xavier to come after him, but when he'd mentioned Gail, Cas began to feel the slow burn. Xavier had better tread carefully.

"So, what about it?" Bobby snapped at Xavier. All heads turned to look at him. "I sent them to Las Vegas on a mission, as foretold by the Prophecies. If they had a chance to relax while they were there, good for them." There. That should shut them up. They couldn't condemn him for doing his job, could they?

"Oh, well, if it was foretold by the Prophecies, then I'm sure it was all right, Brother Xavier," Ignatius said, mollified by Bobby's explanation.

"Oh, and was it 'all right' for two unmarried Angels of the opposite sex to be staying in one room, alone together, in 'Sin City'?" Xavier said sarcastically.

Ignatius was surprised. "Brother Castiel and the Angel Gail?" he asked Xavier curiously. He wasn't comfortable with this if it were true, but Angels were celibate. Just what was Brother Xavier trying to imply?

"Yes," Xavier replied. "Now, we all know that HE has been spending entirely too much time with humans and is perhaps subject to their bad influence. So maybe allowances can be made," Xavier continued magnanimously, believing he was being quite fair. "But what of the Angel Gail? What kind of a female Angel would go along with this type of immoral arrangement?"

Bobby winced. This was not going to be pretty. But he'd give Cas a moment before intervening.

Sure enough, Castiel bolted out of his chair to the end of the table and grabbed Xavier by the front of his shirt. "You need to shut your mouth," he said threateningly.

Xavier was not to be deterred. He had right on his side. "What's the matter, 'Brother'?" he asked Castiel. "Did I touch a nerve?"

"You do not want to test me." Castiel bit out the words. His voice was low and even, but his hands were shaking with rage.

Xavier was starting to feel intimidated now, but he had a point to make and he was determined to make it. "You need to end your association with that girl," he said to Castiel. "She is more human than Angel, and she is leading you into the path of sin."

Now Castiel did have his blade out, and he put it to Xavier's throat. "Say that again," he growled. "Say it just once more."

Xavier was really scared now. Why didn't Bobby intervene?

Bobby sighed, knowing he'd have to. He'd really been enjoying the show, though. But he couldn't have his friend and his only ally in this room go to prison for murder. So he waved his hand and moved Castiel away from Xavier, then snapped his fingers and Cas's blade was gone from his hand.

Castiel's eyes blazed at Bobby for a moment, then he nodded at his friend, just one nod, but it spoke volumes. He'd been about to do it, too. And while Cas would not regret it, Castiel would have. But not because he cared one ounce about Xavier's well-being. It was because he cared about Bobby's. And if Castiel were to go to prison for murder, he and Gail would be well and truly separated, and Xavier and his ilk would have won.

So Castiel returned to his seat as Xavier composed himself and brushed the front of his shirt as if to remove Castiel's invisible handprints.

Bobby didn't know what to do next. The other board members were looking at him expectantly, but he was at a loss. Was there even any point in continuing? He could see how things were going to be.

He sighed. "I think we should reschedule."

Xavier laughed shortly, but said nothing. His fellow board members looked at each other, shocked to the core at what they had just heard and the scene they had just witnessed. They stared at Castiel, who sat slumped in his chair, brooding. Not all of his anger had dissipated, but he realized he had just made a very bad tactical error. Xavier had clearly done his homework and had put his finger on the right button and pushed it, hard. And there was nothing Castiel could do about it. You could give him a thousand opportunities and he would have done the exact same thing every time. No one was going to attack Gail like that. No one.

Xavier stood suddenly, and Bobby tensed, but Xavier merely yanked open the conference room door and stalked out. After a moment's hesitation, the other board members followed. Ignatius was the last, and he hung back for a moment. He looked at Castiel and Bobby as if he wanted to say something, but then turned and left the room. He was the only one who had taken a printed agenda with him.

Bobby sat back in his chair, letting out the breath he'd been holding. Early in the day or not, he wished he still drank. He looked at Castiel.

"Well now, that could have gone a little better, don't you think?" Bobby quipped.

Cas looked up at him. "I'm sorry, Bobby. I just couldn't - " he didn't even know how to finish that sentence.

But Bobby was sighing. "I know, Cas, I know." Great. Now word would spread like wildfire. God's first choice to replace Him was a sinner who was two steps removed from being a homicidal maniac, and God's second choice was the man who had let him out of his cage. If there had been any respect for Bobby in the position before, there would be none now.  
Just then, Bobby's receptionist knocked on the open conference room door. "Sorry to bother you, but I have a message for Castiel. Gail asked me to tell you that she's here. I believe she's waiting for you in the break room."

Cas's head snapped up. She was here? Why was she not at the bunker? But he was glad. He really needed to see her right now. He looked at Bobby.

Bobby sighed again. "Go. We'll talk later."

Castiel jumped from his chair and rushed out of the conference room.

"Cas - " Bobby said, but his friend was already gone. It had just occurred to Bobby that he had forgotten to tell Cas about Aurielle. Again.

Gail and Becky had been having a nice enough chat in the break room. Becky filled Gail in on the events which had occurred after Gail had died.

"I felt so bad for you, but Dean was checking for your vital signs and I still thought you might be OK," Becky was saying in earnest.

Gail smiled. Becky meant well, she knew, but honestly, she couldn't believe Becky still thought she might be "OK" just because Dean had been checking her. Did Becky think Dean had a magic wand? She'd been dying even then. Becky was ditzy, but she was kind of sweet, too. Gail was glad Becky was an Angel.

"And poor Castiel. I saw him crying and I knew you guys were really in love," Becky continued.

Gail thawed then, and her attitude towards Becky did, too. So, Becky wasn't the sharpest knife in the drawer. Becky was young, and she obviously just said whatever came to mind. It had been sort of nice to hear about her relationship with Castiel described from Becky's perspective. It brought back warm memories of their recent time together in Las Vegas as humans. Things had been so carefree up until that last afternoon. And now that they were back, it just seemed like everywhere they looked, something wicked was this way coming. Gail sighed.

On cue, Aurielle walked into the break room. Seeing Gail, she froze.

Gail looked at her, shocked.

Becky looked from one of her friends to the other. She automatically introduced them, then she remembered that they sort of knew each other. Didn't they? Then she remembered that Aurielle said she only knew "of" Gail. Whatever that meant.

Gail thought about running out of the room, but where was she going to go? Besides, she didn't want to give Aurielle the satisfaction of seeing her afraid. Aurielle had been in league with Metatron, and had tortured and nearly killed Gail, spouting some nonsense about trying to make Gail "confess". Confess to what? Then Metatron had told Aurielle he and Chuck had lied to her, and Aurielle had released Gail. Gail had fallen to the floor, bleeding and in pain, and Castiel had killed Aurielle. Then Gail had succeeded in killing Metatron when he'd been advancing on Castiel. At least, she thought she had. But Metatron had survived somehow, at least long enough to plunge a knife into Gail in retaliation. And now here was Aurielle. Not only had Aurielle survived, but she was in Heaven! What the hell? Gail didn't know what was going on, but she was getting sick and tired of people who had tried to kill both her and Castiel popping up in front of her. If Crowley showed up suddenly, she'd have the trifecta.

"Aurielle's my new co-worker here," Becky was babbling, oblivious to the thick tension in the room. She was thrilled. She'd never really had any close girlfriends in life; now she had two.

Aurielle slowly approached the table, sitting across from Gail. The two women stared at each other while Becky smiled happily.

And that was the moment Castiel picked to enter the room.

Castiel had just had the meeting from hell, and when he entered the break room, he'd only had eyes for Gail. He was glad to see her in Heaven; she was an Angel after all, and she had every right to be here. Maybe he should take her for a tour; she was bound to have lots of questions. But right now he just wanted to take her back to the apartment, tell her about the events in the conference room, and receive some consolation.

But then he saw where she was looking, and Castiel felt the shock reverberate through his body. Aurielle?!

He rushed to Gail's side, but of course, she was all right. The two women were just staring at each other, neither one looking away. And Becky was saying, "Hi, Castiel," but the fact that Helen was here didn't even register on Castiel, so intent was he on the fact that Aurielle was.

Castiel grabbed Gail's hand, squeezing it so hard it was almost painful. "Let's go," he said, not taking his eyes off Aurielle. He wanted to get Gail out of here right away.

Aurielle looked at him. The last time she'd seen his blue eyes flash like that, he'd been killing her. But she thought they were beautiful then, and she thought they were beautiful now. That would be her hand he was holding soon. She'd figure out a way.

Castiel pulled Gail to her feet. She almost planted her feet to the spot, so intent was she on showing Aurielle that she was not afraid of her. Gail had seen the way Aurielle was looking at Castiel, and Gail thought she was finally getting it. But Aurielle wasn't going to be getting it, Gail thought. Not now, not ever. She wondered how many times Aurielle had looked at Castiel that way in the past during his solo forays into Heaven. Yet she was sure he had no clue. Men.

Out of sheer stubbornness and spite, Gail kissed Castiel on the lips then. It was an Angel kiss, the only kind they could share now, but she wanted to send Aurielle a message. Perhaps she was still part human, too. But the woman had almost filleted her, and now Aurielle was looking at Castiel like he was dessert. Yeah, Gail didn't think so.

Surprised, Castiel kissed her back, then gave her a brief hug. "Let's go," he repeated. Then he noticed Becky for the first time. "Helen?" he said, confused. Castiel was off-balance. What the hell was going on here?

"It's a long story," Gail told him. "We'll talk about it at home."

They left the room then, Gail sparing one last look back at Aurielle. She saw the hatred in Aurielle's eyes as Aurielle temporarily dropped her guard, enraged at the sight of this woman kissing her Castiel.

Crap, Gail thought. What the hell was this, now? As if they didn't have enough problems.

Castiel tugged on Gail's hand, pulling her to Bobby's office.

He had been so angry so often in the past few days, Castiel feared it might be him who would have the stroke. But he was beyond angry now. How could Bobby have brought Aurielle to Heaven? He had to have known what she'd done. He had pledged his loyalty to his friend, and this was how he'd been repaid? As if there weren't enough threats to Gail's safety right now, he had to come into the break room in Heaven and find one of the biggest ones sitting right across from Gail. Acting as if she had every right to be there. This time, there would be no Dean to stand between him and Bobby.

Castiel flung Bobby's door open and Bobby looked up at the two of them. What now? Bobby thought, then he realized. Cas's thoughts were searing into his brain, and they were very dark.

"Close the door," Bobby said, and Castiel was only too glad to comply. This was between the two of them, and they were going to have it out right now.

Gail saw the two men staring each other down and saw she was going to have to defuse this right away before it got out of hand.

"So, I take it the meeting didn't go so great?" she quipped, attempting to use humour to disarm the men. But though she thought she saw Bobby's beard twitch a little, the men continued to stare each other down.

"What the hell did you do?" Castiel asked Bobby quietly. But Gail wasn't fooled; his quiet voice was sometimes his most dangerous.

"I was going to tell you, Cas, I really was," Bobby tried to explain. "I just never got the chance. And I didn't know Gail would be here today."

"She tortured Gail," Castiel continued quietly. "She would have killed her." He released Gail's hand then, afraid he was going to squeeze too hard and hurt her. "Why don't you just bring Metatron and Crowley here too, while you're at it?"

Bobby didn't know whether to laugh or to be angry himself. He sure as hell better not laugh. "Aurielle convinced me she is penitent," he told Cas. "God had her in Purgatory. He told me he was ambivalent about her, and that it was my decision."

Cas almost laughed, himself. "Well then, I see I don't have the exclusive rights on making bad decisions."

Bobby was still a little intimidated, but he stood his ground. "I'll keep an eye on her. But we're in the business of forgiveness, aren't we? No one is beyond redemption, are they, Cas?"

Oh, Bobby was skating on thin ice. Cas's hands curled into fists. "What are you trying to say to me, Bobby?" he seethed.

But Gail had had enough. It had been a stressful couple of days for all of them, and these guys were talking like she wasn't even here.

"Doesn't anybody want to know what I think?" she piped up.

The men turned to look at her. "Sorry, Gail," Bobby said. Wow. Three times now, Gail thought to herself. She would have smiled had the situation not been so serious.

"What DO you think?" Castiel asked her, his expression softening a bit.

Gail paused a moment, remembering Aurielle's face as she'd looked at Castiel, and then the way she'd looked at Gail as she and Castiel were leaving the room. She should tell Bobby about these things. But Gail was trying to look at the bigger picture here. It was obvious to her that the meeting had not gone well. Not only because she had the feeling that there had been tension between Cas and Bobby already when they'd entered the room, but because Castiel had been out of the meeting way earlier than he should have been if they'd had the full meeting. She may not have psychic powers any more, but Gail could sense impending disaster if Castiel and Bobby did not mend their relationship. And if she said that she was afraid that Aurielle had only just begun to cause them trouble, she would be undermining Bobby's decision. And Castiel would probably never forgive him.

So she said, "I think God has made his decision, and we need to put our emotions aside and respect it." Gail took Castiel's hand again. "Let's go home."

His eyes searched hers. She knew Castiel was puzzled. How could she possibly accept this? Gail was wondering the same thing. Now that Sam and Dean would be gone for a while, a fact that she had yet to spring on him, Gail would probably be spending a lot more time alone if Castiel had business to attend to here in Heaven. She admitted to herself that she was afraid. Metatron, Crowley, and now Aurielle. She'd better keep her Angel blade with her at all times. Maybe she'd been too hasty in encouraging the Winchesters to hit the road. Maybe she should have asked to go with them. She knew Castiel would protect her with his life, but he was only one Angel, and he could not be everywhere. And him protecting her with his life was precisely what she was worried about.

Castiel's eyes flashed briefly, then he heaved a big sigh and said, "Okay. All right, Gail." She could see that he still disagreed, but he had capitulated for her once again.

"Goodbye, Bobby," Gail said.

He smiled at her briefly. Once again, he owed her a debt of gratitude. "I'll see you soon," Bobby said to her.

Gail took Castiel's hand and they vanished from Bobby's office. He stared at the blank space where they'd both been for a while after they'd gone. Balls. What a cock-up this day had turned out to be. Gail had helped him just now, supported him when it seemed no one else would, not even Cas. He sighed. He hoped she'd be able to work some magic on her boyfriend and get him back on board, or Bobby would be finished.

But Gail had no magic, and once they got back to the apartment, Castiel released her hand and sat on one of the dining room chairs. They did not eat, of course; but the apartment had come furnished and they'd pretty much left everything as it was. It wasn't like they'd spent a lot of time here, anyway; they'd usually been at the bunker with Sam and Dean or on the road.

Castiel was just staring off into space, frowning. Gail drew up another chair and faced him. She tried to take his hand but it was out of reach, so she settled for putting her hands on his knees instead.

"So how DID the meeting go?" Gail asked him. She really wanted to know.

"Not well," he said shortly.

"I gathered that," Gail replied, but she did so gently.

She waited him out, eyeing him calmly. Finally, he sighed and began to talk about the meeting. Gail was dismayed at Xavier's boldness in defying Bobby and the other board members' support of, or at least indifference about, Xavier's campaign to make Bobby resign. And when Castiel reached the part about Xavier's seeming inside knowledge of their holiday, Gail was startled. How had he known? Castiel had advised her that none of the board members knew about their current living arrangements, so she hadn't been too concerned about the issue of their morality coming into question this early in the game. But now that she'd received confirmation that the hardliners didn't want her and Castiel cohabiting, Gail feared what would happen when they found out.

She was touched that Cas had once again defended her honour, but she also thought he had overreacted. While he didn't describe the ferocity of his confrontation with Xavier in great detail, other than that Xavier had questioned their morality and Castiel had challenged him on it, Gail could picture the scene pretty well in her head.

"So basically what you're saying is he called me a trollop," Gail quipped, trying for humour.

Predictably enough, Castiel was still frowning. "Yes," he said shortly.

Gail sighed inwardly. Sometimes she missed human Cas, too. Castiel had been so angry so often ever since they'd gotten back from their holiday. She knew he'd generally had good reason, but she hated to see him under so much stress. She moved her chair closer to his and now grabbed his hand.

"I take it you disagreed with him," Gail said lightly, smiling.

Castiel finally started to thaw. He squeezed her hand once and looked at her. "Let's just say that he had no other insults to make once my blade was at his throat."

Gail was stunned, and her eyes widened. "You didn't," she said.

He nodded, sighing. "I did."

She was alarmed. Pulling a blade on a senior Angel in a meeting before God? What the hell was he thinking? Just to defend her virtue which, let's face it, was now a moot point?

"Oh, Cas," Gail sighed.

"I know," he said. "I may have overreacted a little." Now he was smiling, remembering the look on Xavier's face.

But, for a change, Gail was not smiling, though she wanted to. "You think?" she said. "Cas, you can't do things like that, you know that!"

"I know that," he agreed, his smile fading. "My temper got the better of me."

Gail did smile now. She wished Dean were here to call him Captain Obvious. Which reminded her, she still had not told him about the Winchesters.

"I guess you were wondering why I wasn't at the bunker," she said now. Castiel looked at her inquiringly. "It's because Sam and Dean had to leave town on a case."

Castiel nodded. He wasn't surprised. He knew the brothers well, and he'd known it would be only a matter of time until they were back on the road. He missed them when they were away, but it was what they did, and he had his own problems now.

"I was thinking about something," Gail said to him. She spoke slowly, gently. He wasn't going to like it, but she'd been considering this idea since he'd told her about what happened at the meeting. He said nothing, waiting for her to continue.

Gail said tentatively, "Maybe, since the guys are gone...I should move into the bunker for a while."

Castiel was dismayed. "Why?"

"If they were that upset about us being in the same room in Las Vegas, imagine their reaction if they find out we're living together in the same apartment. And from what you told me about this guy Xavier, it's only a matter of time."

As she had expected, Castiel was upset. "So what?" he said.

"So...do we really want to give them any more ammunition?" she replied. "It sounds like they're just looking for an excuse to go after you, and this would be just the thing, wouldn't it?"

Castiel looked thoughtful at that. He couldn't deny she was right, but he didn't want to be separated from her, and he didn't want Xavier to dictate their lives. So he said, "No, Gail. I don't want you to do that."

She'd figured he'd say that, but she'd had to at least try, Gail thought. She debated with herself if she should push the issue, but he was looking upset again and her heart really wasn't in it. She didn't want to be apart from him either; she'd just thought she should make the offer.

Castiel misunderstood her silence, thinking she was angry at how he'd phrased what he'd said. So he said, "Please don't leave." He scooped up both of her hands in his and his expression was so forlorn that she had no choice but to say, "I won't, Cas. OK, I won't."

Then he embraced her, smiling with relief. But Gail was worried. She was sure that Xavier wasn't going to give up on his vendetta, and she wondered what he was going to try next.

Xavier was sitting in his office at that moment, wondering the very same thing. What should his next move be?

Despite his bluster, Xavier knew that, petition or no, the board could not simply kick Bobby out of the High Office. Even if the vote had been unanimous, God was God, and even the considerable pull of the Upper Echelon could not eject him from the High Office if he did not want to go. But Bobby was inexperienced, and more human than Angel. Xavier had been hoping to intimidate him into stepping down, clearing the way for Xavier himself to take the post, as Castiel had not wanted it. Xavier had not accounted for the stubbornness of the man. As far as Castiel was concerned, Xavier knew that he had already turned down the job. He figured Castiel wouldn't know what the actual rules were; Castiel had probably used Heaven's rulebook for firewood years ago. Look at how he had behaved at the meeting.

But Bobby refused to step down, and Xavier was growing frustrated. Maybe it was time to force the issue. He'd already snuck into Bobby's office once and answered the Hotline. That was how he'd known about Castiel's trip to Las Vegas.

As the most senior Heaven-based member of the Upper Echelon, Xavier had the key to God's office. When the original God had gone on his road trip, He had given a spare key to Xavier for safekeeping. Castiel had already been off the grid by then, so God had had to trust Xavier with it. God Himself did not care much for Xavier, but he had been the ranking Angel in Heaven at the time.

The first time Xavier used the Hotline, it had been more or less a happy accident. Admittedly, he had used his key to let himself into the office when he knew full well that Bobby wouldn't be there. This was shortly after Bobby had gotten the job, and Xavier had rationalized to himself that it was his duty to find out about the Angel who would be the Supreme Leader. So, he had done a little snooping. He was just looking out for Heaven's best interests.

Xavier had checked Bobby's desk but found nothing of interest there. Curiously, there was what appeared to be a book wrapped in gaily-coloured paper in the lowest drawer of Bobby's desk, but although it looked a little out of place, Xavier saw nothing else even remotely curious. Disappointing. He had turned to leave when a phone began to ring.

It was not the phone on Bobby's desk. The ringing sound was coming from the credenza behind the desk. So Xavier opened the door and saw a black phone there that was the source of the ringing. He picked up the receiver, mainly out of habit.

"Hello?" Xavier said cautiously.

"It's me," Crowley had said.

Xavier's brow furrowed. "Who?" He cursed inwardly. What had he done? He wasn't supposed to even be in here, and now he was giving his presence away.

Crowley rolled his eyes. This obviously wasn't Bobby, but one of his underlings, and a stupid one, at that. He was answering the Hotline to Hell; who did he think it was, Dial-a-Prayer?

"Crowley," he snapped. "I have a message for your Boss."

Xavier nearly dropped the receiver. Crowley?! The King of Hell had a direct phone line to Heaven? His shock kept him silent.

Crowley sighed. Obviously, he wasn't the only one with personnel problems at the moment.

"Tell God that Chuck and Metatron have escaped through the portal and are running around loose somewhere in Las Vegas," Crowley said. "I'll handle it, but as a courtesy, I just called to let him know. He may want to keep an eye on the Winchesters and the Angels."

Xavier's eyes widened. Metatron? Chuck? So that was where they'd gone. Not that he was particularly surprised. But: "The Angels?" Xavier asked. He couldn't help himself.

Crowley gripped the handset tighter. "Yes, the Angels Castiel and Gail, you bloody moron! Bobby knows all about it, he's the one who sent them there for a holiday! Just give him the message!"

Then Crowley slammed down the phone in frustration. "That's what I get for being a nice guy," he said aloud, to no one. Of course, there had been nothing nice about his motivation for calling. While Heaven and Hell had always used the Hotline to communicate the reports of major developments in either domain, Crowley's reason for making the call had been simple at the time; he had wanted Gail kept alive until he could figure out how to get her for himself. Thinking that Castiel and Gail were Angels, as they bloody well should have been, Crowley had thought Bobby would contact Castiel on Angel Radio and pass on the message. Castiel would make sure his little Angel girlfriend came to no harm, keeping her alive for Crowley. He'd invoked the revered Winchester name as a show of good faith, and because the brothers were Priority One for Bobby.

Of course, the message had never been delivered, but that was how Xavier had found out about Castiel and where he'd been. Xavier had just simply guessed the rest, and Castiel had confirmed it for him by his violent reaction at the meeting.

Now, the Hotline was calling to Xavier like the lure of a siren song. Xavier knew that Metatron had since been returned to Hell, and that both he and Crowley were mortal enemies of Castiel's. If Xavier hoped to take over the High Office, he needed to get Castiel out of the way. Castiel had thrown in his lot with Bobby, and Castiel was dangerously unbalanced. The rest of the board agreed with Xavier that Castiel needed to be neutralized in some way, but no one had been able to figure out how to do it. Of course, the other board members were bureaucrats, and had been talking about some kind of censure according to Heaven's laws. But Xavier was thinking outside the box; he had a much more permanent solution in mind. Castiel had embarrassed Xavier in front of his peers this morning, and for that alone, he would pay.

And when Bobby was cut off from his last ally, Xavier would figure out a way to oust him from the Office. Bobby was hanging by a thread as it was, according to Xavier's friend Jason. Jason had conducted an informal poll in Heaven, and Bobby's rating among the Angels was abysmal.

Xavier picked up the phone and called Bobby's receptionist, who advised him that Bobby had left for the day and she was about to leave, too. Was there a message? No, Xavier said, he'd call tomorrow.

Smiling, he picked up the key to Bobby's office. Xavier had a phone call to make.

After the disaster at the meeting and the subsequent run-in with Cas, Bobby had needed a pick-me-up. So he had told his receptionist he was leaving for the day, and advised her she could do the same. He'd had enough of the office for today.

He went to the Garden and sought out Chuck. It was high time they had a chat. If Bobby's intuition was right, Chuck was on the road to reformation. And if that was the case, Chuck needed to return to Heaven. After Bobby's recent screw-ups, he felt like winning one today.

And if Chuck had a hidden agenda, Bobby would know. Either way, a decision had to be made on Chuck.

Chuck was sitting by the stream, as Becky had been.

"Chuck," Bobby said from behind him, and Chuck turned around, startled.

"Am I in the Garden?" Chuck asked Bobby. He'd been in Heaven before and he was astute; it hadn't taken Chuck too long to figure it out once he'd woken up here.

"Yes, you are, Chuck," Bobby replied.

Chuck's face broke into a wide grin. "Thank you, my Lord!" he exclaimed.

Bobby eyed him suspiciously, looking and listening for any hint of sarcasm.

But Chuck was sincere. He'd made a promise to himself in Las Vegas and he intended to keep it. When he'd woken up here, Chuck knew that he had died trying to protect his Brother, Castiel; and instead of feeling resentful or cheated, as the old him would have done, Chuck was content. He'd done the right thing, finally, and he'd done the best he could. He only prayed that Castiel was all right. Chuck was sure that his sacrifice had not been in vain. Sam and Dean had been there. He was sure they'd have protected their friend. He was deeply sorry about Gail, though. He had shouted out the warning to her, but Metatron had moved too quickly and it had been too late. Chuck would spend the rest of his existence making it up to Castiel if given the opportunity. If he got to stay, that was. He knew that the Garden was a waiting area only. Just because he was here didn't mean he was going to be allowed back into Heaven. And considering how evil he had been before, he wouldn't blame Bobby if things went the other way.

Chuck had thought of all those things when he'd first woken up and he was thinking them now. Bobby heard all this, but still he said nothing to Chuck. What Castiel had said to Bobby about Aurielle and poor decisions had really stung. Bobby wondered if he was going soft, or just soft in the head. He had allowed Aurielle back into Heaven, and now he was considering doing the same for Chuck. And how in the hell was he going to justify his decision to Castiel if he did?

But then Bobby started to get a little angry himself. Who was God here anyway, him or Cas? If Cas had wanted the job, he should have just taken it when God had offered it to him to begin with. But he hadn't wanted the job, and it was Bobby's now. Which meant he would be making the decisions, not Cas.

So after they talked a bit more, Bobby decided to give Chuck another chance. He took Chuck back up to Heaven and, knowing Chuck's love of the written word, Bobby gave him a job in the library.

Chuck did love books, he always had, and he was genuinely grateful. He pledged his loyalty to Bobby as God, and Chuck was delighted when Bobby told him that Gail was alive and well, and back to being an Angel. Chuck asked Bobby to please bring her by the library when he could, so Chuck could apologize to her personally for all the wrongs he had done. And Castiel, too.

Bobby said he'd see what he could arrange. But first, he thought to himself, he'd better make sure Gail was standing in front of him when he told Cas the news. Too bad the Winchesters couldn't come up to Heaven, too. Bobby had the feeling he was going to need all the protection he could get.

Gail had wanted to keep the conversation light after they'd already experienced so much dark that day, so she had been reminiscing about their holiday.

"What was your best moment?" she asked Castiel.

He looked at her, a slow smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

"OK, besides that," Gail said, smiling too.

He didn't have to think too long. "The secret garden," he answered.

"Yeah, I thought you might say that," Gail said. She thought she might have to go on Google and find out if there was a place like that around here. They could both use a little more serenity in their lives, especially now.

"What was your best moment?" Cas asked her.

She was pondering this when she got the call on Angel Radio. Bobby wanted to see her in his office right away. Only her.

Castiel had heard it too, of course; she didn't rate a private frequency. He frowned again. Damn Bobby's timing, Gail thought. She'd just begun to calm Castiel down.

"Why would he want to speak to you alone?" Castiel asked her.

Gail shrugged. "Beats me," she said. "I guess I'll find out when I get there." She rose and kissed him gently on the forehead. "I'll see you in a bit."

"Thanks for coming, Gail," Bobby said. "Please, have a seat."

Gail sat in one of the chairs across from his desk.

"I guess you're wondering why I asked to see you alone," Bobby said.

"Yes," Gail replied, then smiled. "And no. And I'd just about had him calmed down, too."

Bobby's beard twitched with amusement. He'd liked Gail from the beginning, but now he was starting to like her a lot. "Now who's reading whose thoughts?" he said.

Gail laughed.

"On that subject, I have another piece of news, but I thought I might try telling you first," Bobby said, sitting back in his chair. Gail waited for him to continue. After a moment, he did: "I've brought Chuck back up to Heaven."

Gail was surprised. Now she could see why she was here alone. One more conspirator, joining Heaven's ranks. Cas was going to lose it. She knew the animosity between him and Chuck went way back. What on earth had gotten into Bobby? Was she sure he was even their friend?

"I AM your friend, both you and Cas's, though I know it doesn't seem like that right now," Bobby said. Then: "Sorry, that one was just too strong." He smiled at her, but Gail didn't smile back this time. She was starting to feel betrayed. First Aurielle, now this.

"I wanted to talk to you about Chuck," Bobby continued. "I wanted you to know that he was the one who shouted the warning to you just before Metatron attacked you."

Really? OK, that was a surprise. Gail had been wondering who that was. As far as she knew, there had been no one else there save for Metatron who knew who she was. Her men had all been in the auditorium.

"And, after you - passed away," Bobby said delicately, "Chuck lost his life trying to protect Castiel from being killed by Crowley."

Gail had been lost in thought about Chuck having been the one to warn her, and her head snapped up at this last bit of information. She now knew about the events subsequent to her death, or at least she'd thought she did. But she hadn't realized that Chuck had died trying to protect Castiel. Maybe they were wrong about Chuck. Maybe Bobby was right. Perhaps she owed it to Bobby to at least listen to what he had to say.

But then Bobby said, "He's here in Heaven now, and he wants to see you."

Gail felt leery again. Did she really want to see him?

"I'll bring you over to the library, where he's working," Bobby persisted. "I'll stay with you the whole time. I think you should listen to what he's got to say, Gail. He wants to apologize to you, and to Cas, and I believe he's sincere."

Gail sighed. Was he really going to make her do this? But she looked in Bobby's eyes and saw the kindness there. She reminded herself that his friendship with Sam and Dean went way back, and though things had been rocky between them lately, Castiel thought highly of Bobby also. So she said, "OK, Bobby. I'll give him a chance." She smiled, almost in spite of herself. "Maybe if I'm convinced, I can convince Cas to leave him in one piece."

But as they walked to the library, Gail wasn't sure that what she'd said was so funny.

Chuck rushed over when he saw Bobby and Gail walk into the library, but Gail took a step back out of reflex and Chuck slowed down immediately.

"I'm sorry, Gail, I'm just so glad to see you're all right," he said to her, smiling.

Gail wasn't necessarily buying it. This was the guy who'd plotted Castiel's destruction with Metatron, and had turned Aurielle into a potential killing machine. Sure, he was supposed to say that, but words were easy, weren't they? And from what Gail had heard, Chuck was a master at them.

"I know what you must be thinking, and I don't blame you," Chuck said. "I did horrible things to both you and Castiel, things I'll never be able to take back. But I truly have changed. I've let go of all my old resentments and I wanted to reach out to you and say how very sorry I am. But I'm here now, and I intend to make the most of my second chance. I'd like to be your friend."

Gail looked at him but said nothing. He was saying all the right things, but..."Wait a minute. It just dawned on me," Gail said to Chuck. "You're the man I talked to that first night in Las Vegas. In the bar."

Chuck nodded. He hadn't recognized her at the time, but he knew now that that had been her.

"Why didn't you warn me then?" Gail asked him.

Chuck was agitated. "I didn't even know Metatron was there! He came in the bar just after you left, and that was the first time I saw him, I swear."

Gail shivered a little. She'd just realized how close she'd come to bumping into Metatron that first night. OK, Chuck could be telling the truth. About that, anyway.

"I looked for all four of you that day but I couldn't find any of you!" Chuck continued. "I really tried, Gail."

She looked at Bobby briefly, then back at Chuck. Should she believe him, as Bobby seemed to?

Chuck tried a smile. "Bobby tells me you love books, like I do. We've got a lot of good ones here. Feel free to drop by any time. If there are any you like, I can put them aside for you."

Gail looked at him, her expression cool. "I'm not sure how much reading I'll be doing looking over my shoulder for Aurielle all the time."

Ooh. Bobby winced. She had gotten both him and Chuck with that one.

Chuck hung his head. He had pushed too far, too soon. But he had to man up, be honest. "You're right. I am totally to blame for Aurielle. I have no excuses, Gail. Of my many sins, what I did to Aurielle was probably the worst." Chuck looked at Bobby then. Aurielle was in Heaven, too? He hadn't known that; he and Bobby hadn't discussed it. Didn't Bobby realize that Aurielle was far more dangerous than Chuck himself had ever been, even on his worst day? Unless she'd changed, too? She'd been such a fanatic, though; she'd even scared him a bit before he'd sent her to Earth to torture and kill Gail. Could a person like that truly change? Of course, Chuck had once been just as evil as anyone, and he had changed. So he supposed anything was possible.

"Would you like me to talk to her?" Chuck offered. "I probably knew her best. Maybe I can find out where her head's at." Now that Chuck had made a tiny inroad to forgiveness, he genuinely wanted to help keep Gail safe.

Gail thought that would just be a waste of time. Even if Chuck were sincere and able to get Aurielle to speak to him, Gail felt it would do no good. She'd seen the look in Aurielle's eyes.

She sighed. "Don't worry about it," she said to Chuck. No, she'd be doing enough worrying for the both of them.

Gail looked at Bobby. Time to go, she thought, opening up so he could hear her without her having to speak.

Bobby cleared his throat. "Well, we have to be running along," he said to Chuck.

"Goodbye, Gail," Chuck said. "I'm really glad you stopped by. Next time, please bring Castiel with you. I have a lot to apologize to him for."

"We'll see," Gail said, and turned her back on Chuck so he would not see her smile. Was Chuck really sure he wanted that? They said the pen was mightier than the sword, but she wouldn't bet on that if she were Chuck. But her smile quickly disappeared. She wasn't looking forward to going home and breaking this latest news bulletin to Cas. Thanks a lot, Bobby, Gail thought, and this time she didn't care if he heard.

When Bobby had been in the Garden talking with Chuck, Xavier had crept into Bobby's office.

He opened the credenza behind Bobby's desk and regarded the black phone for a moment. Was he really considering this? If Xavier picked up that phone, he would be calling the King of Hell. Did the end justify the means? But Xavier was convinced that Bobby and Castiel were going to bring down Heaven if allowed to continue on the path those two were taking. They would undermine everything that God and Xavier himself had worked so hard all these years to build. And the cracks were already starting to show. Computers, trips to Las Vegas...what would be next? Xavier had to put a stop to it, and if this was what he had to do to save Heaven, this is what he would do.

So he picked up the phone and it automatically rang on the other end.

Crowley and Metatron had been sitting in Crowley's office, brainstorming, when the white phone in the bottom drawer of Crowley's desk started to ring. Crowley looked down curiously.

Metatron raised his eyebrows as Crowley took the phone out of the drawer and put it on his desk. He picked it up. "Yes?"

Xavier swallowed, then said, "This is Xavier, the Senior Upper Echelon Angel."

Now Crowley lifted his eyebrows. This, he had not expected. He'd thought this was going to be Bobby, wanting to have a little chat about Las Vegas.

"Who are you, really?" Crowley said into the phone.

Xavier was taken aback. "I just told you."

Crowley said, "I happen to know that the Senior Upper Echelon Angel is Castiel, not you, Xavier."

Xavier was annoyed. The King of Hell was nitpicking. "I am the Senior member who is based out of Heaven," he snapped back.

Crowley smiled. He knew very well who Xavier was, and he knew how Xavier felt about Castiel. Crowley had not achieved the throne by accident. He knew quite a few things about Heaven and its politics.

"What do you want, Xavier?" Crowley asked.

Metatron leaned forward in his chair. When he'd heard Crowley speak Xavier's name, Metatron suddenly became very interested in this conversation. He had known Xavier for many years, and knew the kind of Angel Xavier was. Was Xavier calling Hell because he was finally ready to cast the rule book aside and join his and Crowley's team? Metatron hoped so; it would be invaluable to have a man on the inside in Heaven.

"I don't have much time," Xavier replied. "I am prepared to deliver Bobby Singer and Castiel to you."

Crowley actually had to take the phone away from his ear and look at it, as if checking to make sure he had heard right. There was no way. He knew how much Xavier hated Castiel, but this had to be a trick.

"Can you repeat that one more time?" Crowley said. He gestured to Metatron, who leaned forward even more, and put the phone to Metatron's ear.

Apparently, Xavier did repeat the offer, and Metatron sat back in his chair after a moment. He was smiling broadly.

Crowley put the receiver back to his own ear. "So, with Bobby and Castiel out of the way, you believe you will be able to take over the High Office?" he asked Xavier.

"I am the next in succession, yes," Xavier replied stiffly.

So that's what was in it for him, Crowley thought. Bobby and Castiel both, then. Crowley held no particular animosity for Bobby, but if he could get Castiel, he'd take the set. And as for Xavier ruling Heaven, Crowley didn't care. As long as Crowley got what he wanted, Dean Winchester could rule Heaven, for all he cared.

But Metatron cared. He cared a lot. He and Xavier had never much liked each other, but Metatron would prefer Xavier to rule Heaven over Bobby or Castiel. Metatron had once had aspirations to the High Office himself, but he knew he was so hated in Heaven that no one would follow him now. But, if he were to sit at Xavier's right hand...

So Metatron would help Crowley right now, and then, when Xavier was God, Metatron would help himself.

\- 7 - Games

Gail appeared back in the apartment she and Castiel shared, to find him sitting in the same place as he had been when she'd left.

She went to sit down beside him. How the hell was she going to tell him that Chuck was back in Heaven? That Bobby had brought him there? And most of all, that she was prepared to give Chuck a second chance? Oh, and as a bonus: that Chuck wanted to apologize to Cas in person?

Gail looked at him and took a deep breath. Well, she thought, we've had a good run. Maybe she'd be moving into the bunker before the day was out after all.

"Bobby called me because..." her voice caught, but she made herself continue, "...he's brought someone else back to Heaven."

Castiel just stared at her, waiting for her to continue. Gail took another deep breath, and then it all came out in a rush: "He brought Chuck back to Heaven, and I know how you feel about him, and that's how I felt too, but he's the one who tried to warn me about my attack, and Crowley killed him while he was trying to protect you from being killed, and Bobby believes he's sincerely reformed, and I think he might deserve another chance."

There. Let Cas do whatever he was going to do.

But he continued to stare at her, saying nothing. Doing nothing. No reaction at all. He was probably too stunned, too angry to move.

"Castiel? Cas?" Gail said. Still nothing. Just that steady, blue-eyed gaze.

Now she was really worried. Gail had never seen this before.

"OK, say something, do something, yell at me, punch a wall, something," Gail said. "Get it out of your system."

Castiel rose and went to his room, shutting the door behind him.

Crap. This had to be bad. What should she do now? Go in there? Leave him alone? Gail honestly didn't know. This was without precedent.

She figured she'd better leave him alone for a while; he probably had to cool down for a bit. So Gail grabbed her purse and left the apartment.

She walked over to the park across the street from where they lived and sat on a bench, thinking about what her next move should be. Then Gail remembered sitting on a bench a while back when it had been her who had been angry at Castiel, and a friend who had helped her then.

She took out her cell phone and made the call.

Dean answered his phone. "Hi, Gail, what's wrong?"

"How did you know it was me?" She was already smiling; it was so good to hear his voice.

"Hello? Call display?" he retorted.

"Okay, smartass, then how did you know something was wrong?"

"Hey, I said to call us if you needed us, right? So I figure you need us."

"Maybe I was just calling to say hi," Gail said. She was a little stung by what he'd said, but that didn't make any sense. She DID need him.

"But you aren't," Dean said. "Spill it."

Gail sighed. "OK, Dean." She found herself telling him about Bobby, Aurielle, Chuck, and Cas. It all came out in a rush.

"I don't know what to do, Dean," Gail said.

Dean was quiet for a moment. Then: "All I can tell you about Bobby is he's got the most sense of right and wrong as anybody I know," Dean said. "And Cas...is just Cas. He'll come around."

"Yeah, but what do I do in the meantime?" Gail asked him.

Dean didn't respond. He honestly didn't know.

"Would you and Sam mind if I moved into the bunker for a while?" Gail asked.

Dean was alarmed. "Is it that bad?"

Gail sighed again. "I don't know, Dean. It's complicated."

Dean said, "I don't know what's going on there, but why don't you wait until we get back, and we can all sit down and talk about it?" A voice in the background, then Dean said, "She's talking about moving out." Silence, then Sam's voice:

"Gail, what the hell's going on?"

Suddenly, Gail felt tears sting her eyes. She missed Sam and Dean so much. "I don't know, Sam," she said. "Everything's so messed up, and..." she didn't know how to finish that sentence.

Gail felt the phone being taken out of her hand and looked up to see Cas standing over her. "Hi, Sam," he said into the phone. He listened for a moment, then said, "No, it's fine. Everything is OK." Then silence, then: "Dean, it's OK, really. No, we don't need you to come back. We're OK, really we are." Pause. "OK. We'll talk to you soon." Then he hung up the phone and looked at Gail.

"They're both mad at me," he said to her, smiling. "Not that I can blame them." He sat down next to her on the bench, handing Gail back her phone. "I'm sorry, Gail." He looked down, sighing. "I didn't mean to upset you. I needed some time alone, to think."

"I figured that," Gail said to him. "That's why I came out here."

"And called Sam and Dean?" he said.

"Yes," she retorted, looking at him. "They're our friends." That was all she could say.

But that was all she needed to say. Castiel nodded. "Yes, they are." Silence. "I've been pretty hard to live with since we got back, haven't I?"

Gail didn't know what to say. If she said yes, she would hurt his feelings; if she said no, it would be a lie.

Castiel turned to her and said, "I went to my room and thought about us. About when we met. About Dallas. And Las Vegas. And about everything that's happened since we got back."

Gail was apprehensive. "And?" she prompted.

"And then I came back out to talk to you, and you weren't there," he said. "And I thought about the moment I thought you had died. That's what that felt like. I felt like it was me who had died. Because I might as well be dead if you're not with me."

She could see that he meant what he said, but: "We're going to have to find a way to be OK with this, Cas."

He took her hand. "No, it's me who has to be OK," Cas said. He smiled. "You've done nothing wrong. You should have been able to talk to me."

Gail relented then, quipping, "No more bad news, I promise. It'll be all rainbows and puppies from now on, OK?"

He looked quizzical for a moment, then said, "Can I tell you something?"

Now Gail was quizzical. "Sure, what?"

Cas leaned forward and whispered in her ear, "I never really cared for puppies. They bite."

Gail looked at him, then started to laugh.

"Come here." Castiel pulled her in for a hug, and then they kissed, and everything was all right.

Bobby was idly poking around in his desk, lost in thought. He really didn't know what he was going to do about Xavier. Maybe cleaning some clutter out of his desk would help organize his thoughts.

When he opened the bottom drawer and saw Rowena's present, Bobby frowned. Suddenly he wondered why he had kept it all these years. And why he had never at least unwrapped it to see what it was.

So he took it out of the drawer and examined it for a moment, then put it on his desk and tore the wrapping paper off.

It WAS a book, as he had expected. A very old book, by the look of it. Bobby picked it up and started leafing through it. He quickly realized it was a spell book. There were all manner of magical spells in it. It was almost like a recipe book.

Why would she give him this? Bobby was puzzled. As if he'd ever use any of the dark magic in it. He turned to the overleaf underneath the book's cover. Rowena had written: "You cast a spell on my heart, Bobby. Thought I'd return the favour. Love, Your Rowena."

Bobby felt a pang of nostalgia, remembering the evenings they'd spent together at his kitchen table, and in his bed. Those had been good times. With or not, Bobby had loved her sense of humour and her spirit. He supposed he had loved her.

But he now knew that Rowena was the mother of the King of Hell, and though he missed her from time to time, Bobby was glad she was dead. Now that he was God, that'd be all he'd need. But what did she mean by leaving him this book? He wanted no part of it.

After a moment's consideration, Bobby put the book back in the bottom drawer. When Sam and Dean returned from the road, he'd show it to them, see what they thought of it. Maybe give it to them to put in their library. He certainly didn't want it. And as far as the inscription went, though he'd thought about tearing it out of the book and keeping it for himself, maybe it was finally time to come clean. He spouted off to everyone else about honesty, didn't he? Bobby guessed he should tell the Winchesters about his past association with Rowena. After all, he reasoned, it's not as if any harm had come to any of his friends because of it.

Becky and Aurielle were sitting in the break room chatting when Kevin walked in.

Kevin had been shy around girls in life. He'd been a boy genius and had applied himself to academics before being caught up in the web of the supernatural realm, and as such, had little to no experience with girls. Then he'd been murdered at a young age and had come here to Heaven, working in the transcription department. He'd applied himself to his job just as he had to his studies in life, and his dedication had paid off. When God cast Chuck down to Hell for his crimes, He had chosen Kevin for promotion to the office of One True Prophet. And Kevin's confidence had grown substantially. Except for the block he'd had about the Vegas prophecies. That still bothered him a little, but Bobby hadn't blamed Kevin for what had happened, and now Kevin was churning work out at an amazing rate. He still couldn't see the future for Sam and Dean or their friends though, or for Crowley. After trying and failing numerous times, Kevin had had to give up. Those were the prophecies that Bobby had wanted the most, but it wasn't going to happen. Maybe it was because he'd been too close to them in life, Kevin thought. Even Crowley, albeit in a very negative way.

But except for this one blind spot, Kevin was doing a good job and he knew it. He'd earned the respect of his fellow Angels by being pleasant and approachable. Some of the young female Angels thought he was kind of cute.

"Hi, I don't think we've met," Kevin said to the women. "I'm Kevin." He extended his hand to both of them in turn.

"Oh, you're the Prophet, aren't you?" Becky said to him.

Kevin smiled and nodded. "That's me."

The Prophet! Aurielle thought. So this was the Angel who had replaced Chuck. Other than that, she didn't really care. As long as he left her alone, she'd leave him alone.

"I'm Becky," Becky said to Kevin. She thought he was kind of cute. He was no Sam, of course, but no guy was.

Becky, Kevin thought. Wasn't she the one..."Are you the Becky who was with the Winchesters and the Angels in Las Vegas?" Kevin asked curiously, sitting down next to her.

"Yes," she said, amazed. Then she realized she was being stupid. He was the Prophet; of course he knew.

"How are my friends?" Kevin asked, smiling. He missed the Winchesters.

"Sam's your friend?" Becky was floored. Then she thought to add: "And Dean?"

"Yeah, we go back a ways," Kevin said, sitting back in his chair. They sure did. The three of them had been friends before Sam had killed Kevin. Well, to be fair, Sam had been possessed by the Angel Gadreel at the time. So it hadn't technically been Sam, just his body, who had plunged the knife into Kevin, ending his young life. But Kevin didn't hold a grudge. He'd been pissed at first, but just because there was so much more he'd wanted to experience. But Kevin didn't blame Sam. It wasn't his fault.

Becky was thrilled. She'd have to spend some time with Kevin, question him about Sam. She still hadn't given up on her campaign to win Sam's heart. True, when Becky had found out that Gail was actually an Angel, it had taken a bit of the wind out of her sails. Gail and Castiel weren't a "mixed" couple after all. But they did hang around with the Winchesters all the time. There had to be a way, Becky thought. She'd just have to get to know Sam's friends and go from there.

As Becky and Kevin were getting acquainted, Aurielle was brooding. She had been keeping up the facade of her friendship with Becky, but Aurielle found the girl vapid and exhausting. She was glad someone else had come along to take Becky off her hands for a bit, give her a chance to think.

Aurielle was getting impatient. She had been so happy to have returned to Heaven; it was certainly better than the constant fear and vigilance of Purgatory. But she'd also hoped to have formulated a plan to get close to Castiel by now. That had been the reason she had befriended Becky in the first place. Once Aurielle had discovered that Gail and Becky were friends, she'd thought that Gail could be gotten to through Becky. Or, at the very least, that she would have seen Castiel more often. From everything Becky had told her, Gail never went anywhere without him. But since their first brief encounter, Aurielle had not seen either of her targets.

She had been wondering if there was any way she could get closer to the offices of the Upper Echelon. Aurielle doubted that Castiel himself had an office, as he was rarely in Heaven, but she assumed that if he were to attend their meetings, he was most likely to be found near that area. But she needed a legitimate reason to be there. Or, she could just grab Gail the next time she saw her and hold an Angel blade to her throat. That had certainly proved effective to get Castiel's attention in the past.

"What are you smiling about, Aurielle?" Becky asked curiously.

"Oh, nothing," Aurielle said. "Just thinking happy thoughts." She beamed at Becky and Kevin.

A couple of days later, Sam and Dean were having a beer together in their motel room. They'd successfully concluded their business and were unwinding, talking about the case and about what they should do next.

Sam was thinking about Gail's phone call the other day. Her request to move into the bunker had been odd. She and Cas had been as close and as happy as a couple could be in Las Vegas, and now she was talking about leaving him? What had gone wrong in such a short time? Did he even really want to know?

Dean had been thinking about Gail's phone call, too. She had sounded weird, off from her usual self. He'd been surprised to hear that Bobby had brought both Chuck and Aurielle back to Heaven, but he figured Bobby must have his reasons. Dean could see how upsetting this must be for Gail, and Cas must have popped a blood vessel or two. Did Cas and Gail have a fight? Maybe that was why Gail had asked to move back into the bunker. But they'd been in rougher situations before, and they'd always come through together. What was so different now?

He and Sam looked at each other and said:

"Maybe we should go back - "

"I think we should go home - "

They both laughed. No wonder they'd been able to live together and work together all these years. In a lot of ways, they were the same.

"You go first," Dean said, tipping his beer bottle towards his brother.

"I think we should go home," Sam said. "I didn't like the way Gail sounded on the phone."

Dean frowned. He hadn't liked it either. And Cas had sounded like his old self, the old Angel self, that was. No straight answers, though Dean had asked him some very blunt questions.

"How did she sound to you?" Dean asked his brother.

Sam frowned too. "Like she was about to cry."

Dean felt confused by this. The Cas he knew now would sooner have jumped off a cliff than say or do anything to make Gail cry. What the hell was going on with those two? Usually Dean would steer clear of this type of situation, but he got the feeling that there was more going on than just some domestic squabble.

That last thought decided him. "OK, we'll leave tomorrow morning," he told Sam.

Two days later, Dean drove the Impala into the bunker's garage and shut off the engine. Sam was already on his cell phone, calling Cas.

On the drive home, the brothers had decided they not only needed to talk to Cas and Gail, but Bobby, too. They trusted Bobby implicitly, but Gail had alluded to some tension between Cas and Bobby over Bobby's decisions to bring Chuck and Aurielle back to Heaven, and if they all got together, maybe they could mend a few fences.

When Cas answered, Sam told him he and Dean were home. Could Cas and Gail come over?

"Sure, Sam," Cas answered. "Gail would like that. She's been missing you both."

Well, Cas sounded OK. Maybe they'd made up, and he and Dean were overreacting. But he still wanted to talk to them, to make sure. Sam felt protective of Gail, too.

By the time the brothers dropped off their bags in their rooms and came out to the library area, Cas and Gail were already there.

Gail ran up to both brothers and hugged them in turn. Was it Sam's imagination, or did she look relieved to see them? Or was he reading something into her expression that wasn't there?

"What's up, Cas?" Dean said to him.

Cas had known Dean a long time now, and wasn't fooled by Dean's casual greeting. What Dean was really saying to him was: What did you manage to screw up now?

Cas sighed. "Nothing, Dean," he said, a little uncomfortably. "Just Angel stuff."

Green eyes stared into blue ones and in a rare moment, Cas caved first. "Maybe you'd like to get a beer. This could take a while."

Angel crap or no, the brothers were amazed at how much had happened to their friends in the short time since they'd come back from Las Vegas.

Dean had been amused by Cas's standoff with Xavier in the meeting. He felt like high-fiving his friend. That guy Xavier sounded like a huge dick, and Dean already hated him. Poor Bobby, trying to deal with bureaucratic, holier-than-thou asshats like that. Not for the first time, Dean wondered what the hell they were thinking in Heaven. Bobby was the best man he could think of to run the show up there.

"How are things with Bobby?" Sam asked Cas, as if reading his brother's mind.

"What do you mean?" Cas asked him.

"I think Sam's asking: how are things between you and Bobby?" Gail said. She looked at Sam, thanking him silently. Finally, the elephant in the room.

Cas stirred uncomfortably in his chair. "Not great, Sam."

Gail said nothing further, feeling for both Castiel and Bobby in this situation. Each man had their own point of view, and each man believed himself to be right. She couldn't really fault either one of them; though she herself believed Bobby's judgment regarding Aurielle was very much off the mark, maybe she was biased. Being tortured and almost killed by someone who clearly wanted to succeed in replacing you tended to do that to a person.

"We need to get him down here," Dean said. "Pour shots all around and hash this thing out."

"Finally, something that makes sense," Gail said, relieved. She was so glad the brothers were back. She'd been trying to suggest that very thing for the past few days, minus the shots, and Cas had been resistant.

Cas looked at Dean and sighed. "All right, Dean," he said. "If you think that would be best."

Gail didn't know whether to laugh or be offended. "I've been trying to get you to - " She threw her hands up in surrender. Dean really did have a magic wand, it seemed.

Actually, Cas had been considering extending the olive branch to Bobby, but he thought Sam and Dean's presence might be beneficial. Just in case...well, just in case. But Gail's efforts as a peacemaker had not been lost on him. Her seeming willingness to forgive, if not forget, Chuck's and especially Aurielle's actions were serving as an example to him. He'd been an Angel for thousands of years now, and he still had a problem turning the other cheek. In his experience, most people tended to slap the other cheek too if presented with it.

But Dean said, "Call him, Cas." So Cas called Bobby on Angel Radio, and Bobby came.

They'd all had a good, honest discussion, and Castiel seemed to be in a bit of a better place now, Gail thought. He'd even agreed to come with her to the library and talk to Chuck. Or at least to listen. She thought how great it would be to have Sam and Dean there for the discussion. Gail would have liked to get their opinions on whether she was crazy to be inclined to believe in Chuck's redemption. And they could help out in case Cas went nuts.

But she had not suggested anything of the kind when it came to Aurielle. Gail knew that it would be pointless, and bringing Castiel to Aurielle would only fuel her fire. But, one battle at a time. Though Gail worried about Aurielle pretty much constantly, she was sticking by her support of Bobby, for better or for worse.

Sam and Dean had been invaluable when it came to mending fences between Cas and Bobby, and Gail had been content to sit back and let the four men talk. She'd looked at each of them as they had been talking with great affection. Four men with four very distinct personalities, but they were all on the same side and it seemed like the more they talked, the more this became evident. Having a history together definitely helped. Now that Gail herself had a bit of a history with the Winchesters and with her Castiel, of course, she could see the love between the men, and the respect they had for each other. It seemed to her that Bobby had been a good man in life, but he wasn't perfect then and he wasn't perfect now. But did you really want to follow a God that was perfect? She didn't. It was much more comforting to Gail to see that God could admit he made mistakes sometimes, too. After all, wasn't everybody just a work in progress? Life was tough enough without being expected to start out perfect and then improve from there. For both humans and Angels, it seemed.

So they talked for quite a while about a myriad of subjects, and when they were done, it felt to Gail like the five of them were again a cohesive unit, fighting common enemies.

And that was when everything went to hell.

Xavier knocked on Bobby's door and when he received no answer, he used his key to let himself in. If Bobby had been in there, Xavier had an excuse ready, but Bobby was nowhere to be found. Typical, Xavier thought. God was out in the field again, it seemed. Big surprise. It was like he didn't even want to be here. What kind of a leader just took off every time it suited his fancy? Even though his Father had taken off on an extended vacation when He'd been in the High Office, Xavier supposed this thought wasn't really blasphemy now that his Father had retired. When Xavier achieved his goal and the High Office, he vowed he would work long hours here until Heaven was made back into the original place that had been envisioned when the ancient book had been written. And he would always be available to his subjects. Provided they made an appointment first, of course.

Xavier's hand itched for the Hotline as soon as he'd entered the office, but he'd had a talk with himself since he'd spoken to Crowley. There was something profoundly unclean about talking directly with the King of Hell, and contemplating an unholy arrangement with Crowley went against everything Xavier had long believed in. He'd spoken against Castiel and his sins in the meeting; wasn't trucking with the King of Hell worse?

So Xavier had wavered, yet here he was again. If only he could impeach Bobby by the laws of Heaven, perhaps such a drastic step would not be necessary. He turned away from the credenza and began to search Bobby's office, hoping to find something, anything to use against him.

When Xavier got to the bottom drawer of Bobby's desk and saw the spell book there, he knew he'd hit the jackpot. When Xavier leafed through the book and saw what it was, he was shocked. And when he read the inscription that was written in the book, Xavier started to smile.

Crowley was tired of waiting.

Xavier had promised delivery of Castiel and Bobby a week ago and said he'd be in touch, but the silence had been deafening. Crowley didn't know Xavier and wouldn't have trusted him anyway, but he and Metatron had been intrigued by the phone call and had been eager to hear more. But since that initial contact, nothing.

Crowley had been working on an idea of his own, though. Since Metatron's return to Hell and Crowley's decision that Metatron would be more valuable to him off the torture rack than on, Crowley had undergone a different sort of transformation. Now that he had zeroed in on a goal, Crowley had once again begun to drink only in moderation, and his nightly bull sessions with Metatron had replaced the ones he used to have with Frank. Gail's brother's evil had been true but manufactured; whereas Metatron's evil was genuine and seemed to have no limits. Crowley had dismissed Metatron initially as one of God's disgruntled former employees, but he now had to admit that there was more than sizzle to the steak. Metatron was highly intelligent, and highly motivated. He had convinced Crowley that their goals were identical: throw Heaven into the chaos it had once been in, and obtain some well-deserved revenge in the process.

During one of their nightly bull sessions, Crowley had trusted Metatron enough to confide in him. He mentioned his previous theory about obtaining Gail and her seemingly limitless powers for his service.

Metatron had smiled inwardly. He had seen no such evidence. Aurielle had nearly succeeded in killing Gail in Dallas; it was only his own hubris in admitting to Aurielle that she'd been duped which had saved Gail. Metatron admitted to himself that he had jumped the gun on that one. He should have waited until Aurielle had actually killed Gail, and then told her. But that was in the past; the game still continued. Still, if Gail possessed the type of powers Crowley seemed to think she had, she'd have been able to protect the Winchesters from Metatron before he'd killed them. That Sam and Dean still lived rankled Metatron. He'd been shocked to see the brothers in Las Vegas. What the hell was it going to take to kill those two, an atomic bomb? And as far as Gail's alleged powers went, he was highly skeptical. But Crowley seemed convinced and frankly, Metatron didn't care. She didn't factor into what he was contemplating. At least, not at the moment. This was between the men.

Crowley had continued, musing aloud. He and Metatron both knew that as an Angel, Gail would normally be unobtainable to the King of Hell. But, Crowley said to Metatron, hadn't Lucifer once been just about the highest-ranking Angel there was? And where was Lucifer now? In a secure cage in a restricted section in Hell.

That had given Metatron an idea. He'd been excited by Xavier's idea to deliver both Bobby and Castiel to Crowley, paving the way for Xavier to rule Heaven. But if Xavier had wimped out, couldn't he and Crowley just take matters into their own hands?

So he asked Crowley about Lucifer's cage. Was it true that it was impermeable, encased in sigils and escape-proof?

"Of course," Crowley confirmed. Stupid git. He'd been impressed by Metatron's intelligence up to this point, but Crowley rolled his eyes at this question. "Otherwise, he'd have escaped by now. The cage pre-dates my administration. God himself constructed it, and only God can break its seals. Something I never would have agreed to if I'd been in office at the time."

Metatron leaned forward, his eyes gleaming. "We would be talking about the original God, right?"

Crowley nodded. Of course. What was Metatron getting at?

Metatron continued, "So Bobby Singer, who is not the original God, and Castiel the Angel, who is rendered powerless by sigils..." he trailed off, letting Crowley do the math. Crowley was the Boss after all, temporarily speaking.

Crowley brightened. "...would not be able to escape Lucifer's cage."

Metatron sat back in his chair. "Bingo."

Crowley frowned. How to get them here, though? He thought for a moment, then he had it. Of course. Sam and Dean Winchester. How else?

He looked at Metatron. "I think it's time we paid Earth a little visit."

Hell's portal to Earth via Las Vegas was now sealed, but the King of Hell didn't need to worry about such matters. He took Metatron's hand and they transported to Earth immediately. Once there, Crowley released Metatron's hand right away. Pity he had not thought to bring some Purell. They were allies now, but there was something distinctly slimy about Metatron.

"Let me know when you sense one," Crowley said to Metatron, resisting the urge to wipe the hand that had held Metatron's on his suit. How evil did you have to be to creep out the King of Hell, anyway?

Metatron raised his head as if trying to catch a scent. One of the benefits of being one of God's Original Angels was being able to sniff out an Angel miles away, powers or not.

"Ames, Iowa," Metatron said. "One hundred miles west."

Crowley sighed. Of course. He'd much rather have taken an ordinary bus than to take Metatron's hand again. But they had to get this show on the road. He needed to get some Grace into Metatron if they hoped to pull this off.

Xavier called Castiel on Angel Radio, requesting a meeting. He was careful to say that he wanted to apologize for the way he had behaved at the meeting, and that Brother Ignatius was with him. Xavier wanted to mend fences and assure his Brother that they were all on the same side and just wanted to do what was best for Heaven. Would he please come?

Ignatius smiled at Xavier. He was glad to see that Xavier was willing to put his resentments aside and have this conversation. He was sure that they could work things out. They had all known each other a long time and even though Castiel's actions had at times shocked and dismayed even Ignatius, he knew his Brother Castiel had always been one of God's favourites. Ignatius knew his Father was very wise; even though he himself could not always see it or understand, God must favour Castiel for a reason. So Ignatius was prepared to give his Brother the benefit of the doubt and talk to him about where his head was at.

Xavier was coming from quite a different place, of course. He was just happy he'd been able to get through the transmission with a straight face. He had the spell book he'd taken from Bobby's office in his desk drawer, all ready to produce once Castiel got here. Let him try to defend his friend then. Xavier had arranged to have invisible sigils painted on his office walls prior to the meeting. True, he and Ignatius would be rendered powerless by them, but most importantly, so would Castiel.

Xavier would confront Castiel with the book, with Ignatius as witness. And Xavier had one more surprise up his sleeve: a summons that he would present to his "Brother". The other board members had all signed off on it, even Ignatius. If Bobby were to be impeached from the High Office, it would by default be awarded to Castiel, as God had made the original offer to him. But according to the ancient rules, Castiel had to be deemed worthy by the Upper Echelon board before he could assume the Office. That meant that a tribunal would be held, with the board presiding, Xavier taking the lead as the ranking Angel. Castiel's character would be judged to determine whether he was worthy to assume the High Office, and nothing was off limits. Witnesses could be called to attest, as in a human trial, but Xavier was not concerned. Based on Castiel's track record, Xavier would be able to take over the High Office in about an hour. Two, tops.

Castiel got the call from Xavier on Angel Radio and he just sat there for a moment, astonished. Xavier wanted to apologize to him? Why? And why now?

He wasn't buying it. Cas turned to Gail and told her about the message.

Gail was also skeptical, but she was also slightly encouraged by the fact that Ignatius was with Xavier.

"Ignatius," she mused. "Isn't he the guy who tried to speak up for you at the meeting?"

Castiel felt this might be a bit of an overstatement, but he had to admit that out of all the board members, Ignatius had seemed to be the most reluctant to burn him at the stake. Maybe, just maybe, Ignatius had talked to Xavier and convinced him to be more reasonable.

"Should I go?" Cas asked Gail.

She looked at him. "It's not really for me to say," Gail said. She was uneasy about this whole thing. Heaven's politics were new to her, and she felt like a fish out of water. On the one hand, Gail resented the way the other board members, with the possible exception of Ignatius, seemed to regard Castiel. What the hell was wrong with them? Did they really think they were better than him? She had known Castiel for a while now and though Gail knew he wasn't perfect, he was about as good as you could get. Love may be blind, but Gail thought those Angels must be blind if they couldn't see that.

On the other hand, if there was even a chance that harmony could be achieved, she would be happy to see it. Weren't they all supposed to be on the same side here?

So when Cas asked her again what she thought, that's what Gail said to him. He kissed her on the cheek and winked out of the room. And the wheels were set in motion.

Crowley and Metatron appeared in front of Castiel and Gail's apartment building a short while later.

Crowley had made short work of the Angel they'd found living an anonymous life in Ames, and Metatron had inhaled his Grace. Now that Metatron was back to full power, albeit temporarily, it was time to flush out the Winchesters.

Metatron looked up at the bacony of the apartment where Castiel and Gail lived. Now that he was back to full Angel status, he knew that Gail was there, but Castiel was not. An unexpected bonus. As his and Crowley's powers were now at maximum, Metatron had thought it would be no problem taking both Angels on, but now that he knew it was only Gail, this should be a piece of cake.

Crowley considered just going up there and taking Gail. He could sort out what to do with her later on. But he knew that his partner in crime would not stand for that. Metatron had a bee in his bonnet about their plan to entrap Bobby and Castiel in Hell, and now that he'd had to restore Metatron's powers, Crowley didn't want to rile him up by deviating from the original plan. Crowley honestly didn't know who would win in a fight between himself and Metatron, and he had no particular desire to find out. There would be plenty of time for Gail later on. Once he had possession of Castiel, Crowley could dangle him as bait. But he and Metatron needed the Winchesters to get Bobby and Castiel, first.

So, how to get their hands on Sam and Dean? They'd considered going to the bunker, but that would be pointless. Crowley knew all too well that they wouldn't be able to penetrate the wide assortment of protections the place had. Then Metatron had suggested coming here. But they did not want to engage with the Angel at the moment; they merely wanted to use her to get to the Winchesters. But how?

Gail had been pacing the floor, anxious about Castiel's meeting with Xavier. She'd tried to read but couldn't concentrate. This was driving her nuts.

She found a piece of paper and a pen, then wrote a note for Cas, telling him she'd be on her bench in the park for a while. Gail liked sitting out there. She enjoyed the fresh air, and the place was usually pretty quiet. And it was right across the street. She hadn't considered going elsewhere on her own just yet because Castiel had been so agitated about her safety, but Gail didn't really see the harm. She'd been there alone for a few minutes just the other day. She'd stash her Angel blade in her purse along with her cell phone, and use her formerly human street smarts to stay aware of her surroundings. Her enemies were all in Hell or in Heaven, anyway. And while that did not preclude a sudden appearance by one, Gail thought the risk was small. And Cas would likely be back soon.

She walked out into the bright sunshine and inhaled the fresh air, smiling. Spring was coming, that was for sure. Gail crossed the street and sat down on her bench, smelling the flowers and the fragrant breeze. She'd grown to appreciate and understand Castiel's love of quiet places. But she kept her purse open beside her, keeping her cell phone and Angel blade in view.

Crowley and Metatron both smiled when they saw Gail sitting there with her back to them. She'd made this so easy.

Crowley called Dean on his cell phone.

"Hello, Dean," he said, pleasantly enough.

Dean couldn't believe it. Crowley! What the hell did he want?

"What, Crowley?" Dean snapped. He didn't have the patience or the inclination to chat with the King of Hell.

"I'm with an acquaintance of yours," Crowley said smoothly. "He wanted to say hello." Crowley turned the phone around, then activated the video mode. Wasn't human technology amazing?

"Hi, Dean," Metatron smiled, looking at the phone's screen. "Miss me?"

When Crowley had murdered Metatron, the latter had lost the vessel he'd been using in Las Vegas and had reverted back to his former appearance. Dean might have recognized him from Vegas anyway, having seen Metatron murder one of Dean's best friends, but Dean now saw Metatron's own smarmy face, and he bolted out of his chair.

"Metatron!" Dean yelled, and Sam came rushing into the room.

"What? Where?" Sam said, but Dean waved him off with the hand that wasn't holding the phone.

Crowley turned the phone back to himself, but kept the video function on. "The two of us are here watching over Castiel's little pet for him. Apparently he's flown the coop and left her here all alone. How unfortunate. Well, he's not famous for making good decisions, is he, Dean?"

Then Crowley turned the phone around again and pointed it towards Gail, sitting quietly on her bench. Completely oblivious. Crowley and Metatron were behind her, far enough away that she could not hear them. She should have sensed Metatron's presence at least, now that he was back to Angel status, but Gail was still inexperienced enough as an Angel to ignore the tickle. She'd been thinking about Castiel and how things were going in Heaven and since it was now spring, Gail misinterpreted what she felt. She waved her hand, trying to shoo away what she thought must be some kind of insect buzzing around her head.

Oh, crap, Dean thought. Holy mother-loving hell. This was bad. If he could only just reach out through the phone and put his hands around their enemies' necks.

Sam had been leaning over Dean's shoulder throughout this exchange, and he was scared for Gail, too. Even if she had her Angel blade with her, she wouldn't stand a chance against those two. Where the hell was Cas? Why had he left her alone and vulnerable like this?

Dean covered the phone with his hand. "Sam, call Gail's cell. Warn her."

"No, don't, Sam," Crowley said sarcastically. "Nice try, boys." He couldn't have them tipping her off. He and Metatron needed the Winchesters to come to them. "If you call her, we'll just kill her immediately."

Sam paused in the act of dialing Gail on his own cell phone and reluctantly aborted the call.

"So why are you calling us, you son of a bitch?" Dean shouted into the phone.

Sam was wondering the same thing, too. If they were there to kill Gail, why call the Winchesters and tell them about it?

"My...associate and I would like to have a little chat with you and Sam," Crowley said. "We promise we will not harm Gail if you meet us at the crossroads in half an hour."

"Oh, you PROMISE. Well, we'll just believe you, then!" Dean yelled. He was enraged. He felt like he was going to have a brain embolism, his head was pounding so hard. How his grip hadn't crushed his phone to bits yet was beyond Dean.

Sam's mind was racing. He agreed with Dean. They could just kill Gail anyway as the brothers drove to the crossroads, giving themselves up to the trap that was obviously being set for them.

Crowley could tell they weren't falling for it. "But if you don't meet with us, she will die," Crowley said, "And your friend Castiel, too, when he returns."

Crap, Dean thought. What were they supposed to do here? He and Sam were damned if they did and damned if they didn't. Did they really have any kind of a choice?

"We only want to talk to you, boys," Crowley continued smoothly. Lying through his teeth, of course. "See if we can work out some kind of a deal."

A deal? What kind of a deal could those two bastards possibly propose that he and Sam would want any part of? But if they didn't go to the meeting, Gail was toast. Dean couldn't have that on his conscience.

"We'll need proof that she's alive," Dean said, echoing Sam's thoughts of a moment earlier. "You could just kill her while we're on our way to the crossroads."

Crowley had to admire Dean. Yes, they could. Dean was quite right. But the brothers already had one leg in the car, and he needed them to get all the way in.

"I'll keep the connection until you get there," he said to Dean. "You'll see that she's fine. We won't go near her. And when you get there, call me, and we'll just - " he snapped his fingers. "But we're wasting time now. Pedal to the metal, Dean."

The brothers looked at each other. It would have to be enough. Dean handed the phone to Sam and they raced to the garage.

Castiel stared at the spell book Xavier had just handed him in disbelief. This had been in Bobby's desk? Maybe Bobby had been doing some research, brushing up on the lore. But then Xavier had pointed out the inscription. Castiel's head reeled with the shock. Bobby and Rowena? The King of Hell's mother? The woman who had infected them with the Seven Sins and had helped her son enslave Gail?

He hated to admit it, but Xavier was right. Bobby needed to explain this, at the very least.

"This book alone should be enough to impeach him," Xavier said to Castiel. "And as the one our Father chose originally and the Senior ranking member, the Office would go to you, Castiel."

Cas looked up sharply. He hadn't thought of that. Was Xavier trying to get him to turn against Bobby, using the power of the High Office as the reward? Well, it wasn't going to work. Although Castiel had been very angry at Bobby on a number of occasions recently, and he would certainly have to explain himself when it came to this book, he was still Castiel's friend. And Castiel was loyal. Besides, Castiel was sure Xavier did not want him in the High Office, either. What kind of a game was Xavier playing?

"I do not want the Office," Castiel said uncomfortably. But then he had to reconsider. If he did not take it, the title would go to Xavier by succession. This was the scenario that Castiel had feared the most. He couldn't let that happen. "But I will take it, if Bobby is impeached."

Ignatius had said nothing up until this point, but he spoke up now. "So you will submit to the tribunal?" he asked Castiel.

"Tribunal?" Castiel repeated.

"Yes, the tribunal," Xavier said, trying not to smile. He knew that Castiel would have no idea. Rules meant nothing to him.

Xavier took the summons scroll out of his top desk drawer and placed it on the desk in front of Castiel. "This is a summons signed by the board members, all of us, directing you to appear at your tribunal hearing."

"What are you talking about?" Castiel was confused. He looked from Xavier to Ignatius and then back at Xavier again.

"I thought you were aware of the rules," Xavier told Castiel, feigning innocence. "Read the summons, it'll explain everything."

Castiel's hand crept towards the scroll, almost as if it was a snake that was coiled there, waiting to bite him. Which was an apt analogy in this case. Tribunal? Summons? Hearing? It sounded like Xavier was talking about a trial, with Castiel as the Defendant.

He took the scroll and opened it, beginning to read. But it was very long, and it was in the ancient language, and Castiel was out of practice. So he closed the scroll and looked at Xavier.

"Bottom line it for me," Castiel said. "Exactly what type of proceeding are we talking about here?"

"Bottom line it?" Ignatius asked, puzzled.

Xavier was also at a loss. The human influence no doubt was rearing its ugly head. But he understood Castiel's second question, and was only too glad to respond to it.

"The tribunal is held to examine the life of the aspirant to the High Office," Xavier told Castiel. Now a small smile began to creep onto his face; he just couldn't help it. This was too good. "His deeds, both good and bad, his sins, the content of his character. Witnesses can be called, but the ultimate decision rests with the board at the end of the testimony. With myself conducting the hearing, of course." Xavier made himself stop smiling then. He wanted to intimidate Castiel, as Castiel had intimidated him at the meeting. "And at the end of the testimony, if the aspirant's crimes are egrigious enough, there may be a prison term involved. I've even seen a couple of extreme incidences where the death penalty was invoked." Xavier remembered back fondly the prior tribunals that had been held after God had taken his extended vacation a few years back. Several aspiring Angels had subjected themselves to the ordeal, and those that were still alive were currently rotting in Heaven's prison. Xavier had seen to that personally. But before his own tribunal could be held, The Fall had occurred, and then God had returned.

Castiel regarded Xavier coolly. Now he finally got it. This was Xavier's way of getting rid of him for good. So, the ancient rules required him to be put on trial by Xavier and his cronies, have his life be put under a microscope for all to see, under the guise of judging him to be worthy of an Office he didn't even want? He could just imagine who the witnesses would be, and what they would say. Even if he were able to find witnesses to testify on his behalf, Castiel was sure Xavier would reserve the right to cross-examine them. His mind conjured up a picture of Gail sitting on the witness stand, compelled to tell the truth about their nights in that Las Vegas hotel room. Human or not, no Angel would care, especially not the board. Could she be sent to prison as well, or worse? How ancient were the laws under which they were supposedly bound? And he himself would receive a one-way ticket to a life sentence for his crimes, he was sure. If not the ultimate penalty, death. If Xavier could sway the rest of the board to vote his way, Cas was as good as gone.

Dean had urged the Impala to her limits, and he and Sam reached the crossroads in just over twenty minutes. The tires screeched as he slammed on the brakes. Sorry, Baby, he thought. He'd have to give the car a good tune-up after things calmed down. If that were to ever happen.

Sam had been holding Dean's cell phone the whole time and incredibly, Gail was left untouched. Still blissfully unaware of the danger she was in, letting the sun warm her as she continued to sit quietly on the bench.

"She's still OK," he confirmed to Dean as they got out of the car. Sam handed the phone back to his brother, and got out his own phone, calling Crowley. "All right, we're here," Sam said. The video of Gail had disappeared when Crowley picked up, and an instant later, Crowley and Metatron were standing in front of the Winchesters.

Dean was disgusted. When he last saw these two, Crowley was stabbing Metatron to death. Now here they were, and partners, by the looks of it.

"So, what's this deal you talked about?" Dean asked impatiently.

"It'll be a trade," Crowley said casually. "Two for two."

The brothers exchanged glances. What was he talking about? Who did he have hostage?

Before taking off from the bunker, Sam and Dean had filled their pockets with Demon knives, holy water and the various tools of their trade, but they had to get close enough to their enemies to be able to use them.

Crowley and Metatron knew this, of course. Crowley would have expected no less from them. But if they thought they were going to get the opportunity to even try, they were mistaken.

"This will only sting for a moment," Crowley said, and he and Metatron waved their arms in concert, throwing the brothers back against the car. Sam's cell phone was in his back pocket and it broke instantly, while Dean's cell phone went flying out of his hand, landing on the pavement.

Then Crowley and Metatron advanced on the brothers and conjured up chains, binding Sam and Dean together, back to back.

"Sorry, boys," Crowley smiled. "I assure you the discomfort will only be temporary."

Dean was fuming. "You said we were here to do a deal," he said to Crowley.

"Oh, but you are," Crowley replied lightly.

Metatron chipped in: "Well, maybe not so much to DO the deal as to BE the deal."

Great, Sam thought. Crowley was bad enough; now they had to put up with Metatron. If ever there was a guy who thought he was the smartest person around, it was Metatron, not Sam. He'd sooner the two of them had killed him and Dean right now than to have to listen to Metatron being clever.

"Two for two," Crowley said enigmatically, smiling. He turned his back on them then, said, "Stand back" to Metatron and waved his arms dramatically, like a conductor directing his orchestra.

The ground startled to crumble in front of them and soon everything was shaking. A huge pit opened up, and Crowley turned back to the Winchesters, raising his voice above the noise.

"It's time we had a visit," Crowley said, smiling again. "Sam, you'll love what I've done with the place."

Sam understood immediately. "No!" he screamed. He remembered all too well what had happened the last time he had jumped into the pit of Hell. He'd been locked into the cage with Lucifer and had nearly gone insane. He couldn't do that again, he'd never survive. And Dean was so screwed up already; how on earth would his brother ever come through the experience?

Crowley and Metatron put one hand each on a Winchester shoulder and they all descended into the pit. The ground above repaired itself instantly, leaving no sign that anything had occurred there, save for a black muscle car parked on the road and a cell phone lying beside it.

Then the four of them were in Crowley's office. Metatron had frisked the brothers and removed all of their weapons, making rude comments all the while. He handed the weapons over to Crowley, who locked them in a cabinet. Only then did he release the Winchesters from their bonds.

Sam and Dean glared at Crowley and Metatron, but made no move to attack. They were in Crowley's domain now and had no weapons; an attack would be pointless. Crowley could vapourize them with one look.

As Metatron drew up a chair beside the desk, Crowley looked at the Winchesters and said, "Fancy a drink?"

Both brothers were fuming, but Sam was also confused. When he'd seen the pit opening up, he'd been sure they were being taken to Lucifer's cage. Now they were sitting in Crowley's office and he was acting like the host at a cocktail party.

Crowley saw the look on Sam's face and correctly guessed what he was thinking. "I was just messing with you, Moose," Crowley said, smiling. "Been there, done that."

"What are you babbling about, Crowley?" Dean growled. "Why are we here?"

Crowley sat back in his chair. "I told you," he said casually. "You're here for a trade. You two, for two of your friends. Just sit tight, I have a phone call to make. Sure you won't have that drink?"

The brothers continued to glare at him but said nothing. Crowley shrugged. "Suit yourselves." He took the white phone out of desk drawer and picked up the receiver.

Bobby was sitting at his own desk reading some files when the Hotline rang. Holy hell, what now?

He took the black phone out of the credenza and picked up the receiver.

"What is it, Crowley?"

"You sound like you're under some stress, Bobby," Crowley said. "Angels giving you a hard time?"

"Get to the point, willya?" Bobby said, rolling his eyes. He was in no mood for repartee.

"Fine." Crowley's voice hardened. "I have Sam and Dean Winchester in my office. I'm prepared to return them safely to Earth using the barter system."

Bobby frowned. Crowley had the Winchesters held captive in Hell? "Let me hear them," he said to Crowley. The notion was so wild that he needed proof.

Crowley held out the phone for either brother to say something, but they both remained silent. Why the hell should they speak up? Crowley was talking about a trade, and they thought they were starting to get an idea of what he was getting at.

Crowley sighed. "I wish you wouldn't make me do these things," he said to Sam and Dean, then nodded at Metatron, who took a knife out of his pocket and slashed both brothers.

"Ow! What the hell?" they yelled, and that was proof enough for Bobby. What was going on? Why was Crowley doing this?

Bobby sighed. He was oddly comforted hearing the boys yell; they sounded angry, but healthy enough. But what kind of trade was Crowley proposing, and should Bobby even bother to listen?

But it was Sam and Dean, so Bobby needed to at least listen. Just because they were okay now didn't mean they would remain so.

"What are you proposing, Crowley?" Bobby asked wearily.

Crowley's eyes glistened. "A straight trade," he told Bobby. "Two for two."

"And just who are the two that you would want from me in exchange?" Bobby asked. He really didn't want to hear the answer to this question, but he had to.

"The Angel Castiel," Crowley replied, then paused for drama.

Bobby rolled his eyes again. Of course. And he supposed he knew who the other one would be. They came as a set, and Crowley had been after her since Day One.

"And the Angel Gail, right?" Bobby said.

But Crowley surprised him. "No, I think I'll be leaving her alone for the moment."

Bobby had reached the end of his patience. "Who, then?" he growled into the phone.

Crowley was really enjoying himself now. "I should think that would be obvious," he practically purred into the phone. "You, Bobby. You."

Dean laughed out loud at that. He couldn't help it. Crowley wanted to trade him and Sam, two human beings, for the most powerful Angel he knew and God? It had taken years, but Crowley had finally lost his damn mind.

Sam did not laugh, but he was thinking the same thing. Crowley was nuts. Bobby had God's powers now. He could just look sideways at these two losers and they would explode. And even if there was a way to neutralize Bobby, Sam wouldn't bet against Castiel mopping up the floor with both of them. Cas was deadly when he was angry, and he would be highly motivated to dispatch these clowns after all they'd put the four of them through.

Bobby couldn't believe it. "So Cas and I are just supposed to walk into Hell and tag out Sam and Dean?" he said to Crowley. It was so ridiculous it was almost funny.

"If you want your Winchesters to live," Crowley replied evenly.

Bobby thought furiously. He had no doubt that Crowley meant what he was saying. But why? OK, Bobby could see Crowley wanting to get his hands on Castiel. But Bobby himself? The Devil wanting to take on God? Had Crowley been watching too many movies?

"Tick tock, Bobby," Crowley said calmly. But he motioned to Metatron again, and again Metatron slashed the brothers, making Sam and Dean yell for Bobby's benefit.

Dean leaped to his feet when Metatron slashed him again. He didn't care where he was, he was going to throttle the little bastard. But Crowley waved his hand and Dean was slammed back into his chair as if pushed down by invisible hands.

"All right, all right," Bobby snapped. "Give me a minute to call Cas and I'll call you right back."

Crowley was feeling magnanimous. "Take two minutes," he said, then hung up the phone.

Now what? Bobby thought. He'd better call Cas, see what he had to say. Some choice words, Bobby was sure. He almost smiled. Bobby was upset that the Winchesters had been abducted by Crowley, and he was still puzzled as to why, but he wasn't overly concerned. He thought that Crowley was an idiot to be doing this. Bobby was sure that he and Cas could prevail. Good trumps evil, and a God could certainly defeat a King.

So Bobby sent out the call to Cas on Angel Radio. No reply. He tried again, emphasizing the urgency. Still nothing. What the hell? Where was he?

Castiel was still in Xavier's office. Unbeknownst to him, Xavier had had invisible sigils painted on his office walls in anticipation of the meeting. He knew what a loose cannon Castiel was and Xavier had told Ignatius before Castiel arrived that he'd taken this precaution with their safety in mind. Normally, Ignatius would have thought that this was a sneaky and underhanded thing to do, but he'd seen how Castiel had behaved at the meeting and so he thought that might be prudent.

And because of the sigils, Castiel's radio frequency was jammed and he could not hear Bobby at all.

Bobby was frustrated. His two minutes were almost up and Cas was not responding. He opened his desk drawer and took out the cell phone he kept there for just this type of situation and called Cas's cell number. But it just rang and rang. No voice mail, even; not that it would do much good for Bobby to leave a message. He slammed the phone down on his desk. The two minutes were now up, and Crowley was going to start slicing and dicing the Winchesters if Bobby did not call back. He picked up the Hotline.

Gail was coming down the hall towards the apartment. She had been sitting outside for a while, but Cas was obviously not back yet or he would have come out to where she was sitting. She'd been getting restless again.

Was that Cas's phone she heard ringing in the apartment? Gail walked faster, took her keys out of her purse, and promptly dropped them. Damn! And of course, once she picked the keys back up and let herself in, his phone had stopped ringing.

Bobby had to brazen it out. When Crowley picked up the phone, Bobby said, "You get me. That's it. Take it or leave it."

Crowley was annoyed. "That wasn't the deal," he said to Bobby. "What are you trying to pull?"

"What's he saying?" Metatron asked.

"Just a minute," Crowley said into the phone. He glared at Metatron, but said, "He's trying to change the terms. He says we can have him. That's it; just him."

Metatron's mind spun, then clicked. He did have a high opinion of himself, but he was an intelligent individual and he remembered the ancient rules. He'd transcribed many of them himself. "Take the deal," he told Crowley.

Crowley was getting angry. It was Castiel who he'd really wanted. He had no problem locking Bobby into Lucifer's cage and throwing away the key, but that damn Angel just kept slipping through his fingers and he was sick of it. "Why should I?" he snapped at Metatron.

Sam and Dean eyed each other but said nothing. If any kind of deal had to be made, that was the one that made the most sense to them. Bobby was God; they were sure nothing could happen to him.

"Take the deal," Metatron hissed at Crowley again. "Trust me."

Crowley almost laughed. Trust Metatron? Did Metatron have any idea what he was asking?

"Remember who I used to be," Metatron said insistently. He didn't want to say too much within Winchester earshot.

Crowley considered for a moment. He thought he knew what Metatron was trying not to say. The former Scribe of God should know what he was talking about. All right. He would trust Metatron. And if Metatron was wrong, Crowley would throw him in the cage, too. Maybe he would, anyway. The smarmy little bastard was getting on his nerves.

"All right. You have a deal," Crowley told Bobby. "Meet us at the crossroads in five minutes."

He slammed down the phone, not giving Bobby a chance to respond. Then Crowley waved his arms and the Winchesters were chained again.

Crowley looked at Metatron. "Outside. Now."

When they were outside in the hallway, Crowley wheeled on Metatron. "What do you know that I don't?"

A great many things, I imagine, Metatron thought. But he didn't say this aloud. Crowley was already angry enough at being denied Castiel.

So Metatron went on to explain to Crowley that with Bobby M.I.A., locked away in Lucifer's cage, the High Office would fall to Castiel. However, before he was allowed to take the Office, the ancient rules required that he go through the tribunal process. The tribunal would be run by Xavier, and it was a witch-hunt. With Castiel's record, he would surely be railroaded into prison, or receive the death penalty. And Xavier would do everything he could to make sure it was the latter, Metatron was sure. So Crowley didn't need to take possession of or murder Castiel, he could simply sit back and let Heaven do it for him. Then Xavier would be God, and he would owe them one for having gotten Bobby out of the Office in the first place.

Crowley considered this for a moment. While not nearly as satisfying as having Castiel as a prisoner in Hell would have been, what Metatron said made a certain amount of diabolical sense. The end result would be the same. Crowley couldn't let his anger get the better of him in this situation.

So he capitulated, and he and Metatron went back into the office to transport the Winchesters back to Earth for the handover.

Shortly after Gail had gone back into their building to await his return, Castiel appeared on the street in front of it.

Xavier and Ignatius had walked him to the door of Xavier's office and Xavier had practically pushed Castiel out into the hallway. Castiel did not look pleased, and Xavier knew he wanted to leave. But it wouldn't do to have Castiel know that he couldn't disappear from within the office due to the presence of the sigils. Xavier thought he might have to use that tactic on the rogue Angel again in the future.

So Castiel had vanished once outside the office, and now he was looking at the park bench he knew Gail favoured. He'd half expected to see her sitting there. Castiel knew she'd been feeling restless having to stay inside all the time, deferring to his concerns for her safety. He was uneasy even with the idea of her sitting out here all by herself, but Castiel knew he couldn't keep her caged up, either. Nor did he want to.

But the game was changing now, and the scroll in his pocket outlined the latest threat, a threat that trumped everyhing.

Castiel walked over to the bench and sat down, taking out the scroll and turning it around and around in his hands. He needed a moment to think before talking to Gail.

He knew he couldn't stand trial. With all of the things he'd done? The process might go on for days. But the verdict would be swift, he was sure of it. So Castiel decided he would have to go away somewhere, someplace Xavier couldn't find him.

But what would happen to Gail if he just picked up and left? Could he just leave her like that, anyway? He'd promised himself they'd never be apart again. On the other hand, Cas had also told her that he didn't want her to suffer due to her association with him. Well, she certainly would suffer if Xavier had his way.

Cas knew Gail would be all right if she moved back into the bunker with Sam and Dean. They were like brothers to her now, and they would protect her. And when they went out on cases, she would be in the safest place he knew of. Unless she wanted to go with the Winchesters on the road. Gail could defend herself now and Castiel had witnessed her kill with her blade. Maybe he should just set her free.

What of all their enemies, though? What if Gail left the bunker on her own, as he'd been fearing she was ready to do here, and Crowley went for her? What if Bobby was wrong about Chuck, or Aurielle? Without Castiel around, Gail could walk around a corner in Heaven and find one of those two waiting for her with a blade in their hand. And neither Sam nor Dean would be able to do anything about that. And yes, Bobby was Gail's friend now too, but even though he was God, he could only be so vigilant. He had a lot more on his plate than looking after her, and he couldn't be everywhere.

And what if Bobby were to be impeached in Castiel's absence? Xavier would take over as God, and he would be very angry that Castiel had skipped out on the tribunal. Grudges were a big part of Xavier's makeup, and Cas could envision him going after Gail alone on the morals charge, out of sheer spite. If she were to be found guilty, and she surely would be, a prison term might be a gift. Didn't they stone fallen women to death back in the ancient times?

Castiel's blood ran cold just thinking about it. There was no way he could abandon Gail like that. And if he were honest with himself, Cas didn't want to go anywhere without her. And even though it would be an awful lot to ask of her, he thought she would feel the same.

Cas appeared before Gail in the apartment. His mind was made up.

She rushed over to him and he wrapped his arms around her. Had be really even briefly considered leaving without Gail by his side? He'd sooner have an arm and a leg amputated.

"How did it go?" Gail asked him. She was looking up at him with bright eyes, hopeful that things might be better, and he was going to have to ask her dismantle her life.

"We have to leave. Now," Castiel told her.

Gail was puzzled. "Leave? Where?" she asked.

"Away. We have to get away from here." It was all Cas could seem to say. Now that he'd made up his mind that they had to flee, the magnitude of what he was suggesting made him revert back to his old speech patterns.

"What are you talking about?" Gail asked him, taking a couple of steps back. "What's going on?"

Castiel cursed himself. Of course Gail was confused. She'd thought he was coming back from a mere meeting and he'd shown up blathering about leaving. But his fear was gnawing at him now, and he sensed that there was very little time to spare. If they did not get out of here now, it might be too late.

"Would you do me a favour, Gail? Please trust me. Let's pack our clothes and I'll explain on the way, OK? And if you don't agree with me once I've told you everything, we'll come right back, I promise." He took her hands in his. "You trust me, don't you?"

Gail saw the fear and panic in his eyes. It was strange; she'd seen many emotions there in all the time she'd known Castiel, but she had never seen him look like this. It had to be something serious, even deadly, that was causing that look.

She nodded. "Of course I trust you." Gail smiled briefly, wanting to reassure him that whatever was wrong, they would work it out together. But even though his eyes softened a bit, Castiel did not smile back.

So she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and said, "Let's go, then."

Gail headed to Castiel's room and he followed. They threw their clothes into the bags they'd taken to Las Vegas and Gail rushed to the nightstand, grabbing the picture she'd propped up against the lamp and the remainder of the money that Cas had put there.

They came back out to the living room and Gail got her purse. She noticed Cas's cell phone on the dining room table and went to fetch it, but he said, "Leave it. And yours, too."

She looked at him for a moment, but she saw the grim look on his face, so she took her cell phone out of her purse and laid it on the table beside his. She lingered for a moment. The phones were to be left behind, the apartment abandoned? What the hell were they doing?

But they loved each other, and Castiel had only ever protected her and looked out for her best interests. This had to be the right thing to do. She trusted him implicitly.

"Just a minute," Castiel said. He strode up to the table and punched a few buttons on his cell phone, nodded at something he saw on the screen, then turned off the phone. Then he walked back to where they'd left the bags and picked them up, looking back at Gail. "OK, let's go," he said to her. A beat. "Please."

They walked out of the apartment and down to the street.

"Where to?" Gail asked.

"The nearest tattoo parlour," he said inexplicably. "There's one just a few blocks from here." Castiel started to walk up the street and Gail followed. Of all the things he could have said, she would never have expected that. They clearly had a lot to talk about.

Bobby was standing at the crossroads, waiting, when the ground started to open up just beyond his feet. He backed up in shock until his back was almost against the Impala. When he'd seen it parked there, just abandoned on the road, Bobby knew Dean must be in Hell. He'd never have willingly left his Baby here like that otherwise. Bobby had allowed himself a brief smile at that thought.

But what he was seeing now was no laughing matter.

Crowley and Metatron rose from the pit, holding the Winchester brothers between them. Sam and Dean were chained together and had a few visible cuts, but other than that, they looked OK.

Bobby was feeling apprehensive, but he was God, and he had to come off as strong, invincible.

"Let's do this, then," he said to Crowley, stepping forward. "Let them go."

Crowley waved his hands and the chains fell from the brothers.

"Off you go, boys," he said softly.

Sam and Dean walked towards Bobby, and Bobby started walking towards where they stood. The three men met in the middle and looked at each other. What the hell are we doing? Dean's look said. Are you sure you want to do this, Bobby? said Sam's. But Bobby tried to reassure them: I got this, guys.

Once the exchange had been made, Dean automatically felt for a weapon, but of course he had none left.

"I think you'll understand why I couldn't return your things to you, Dean," Crowley said with a little humour in his voice. "In fact, I think you just demonstrated why." Then he smiled. "I'll have to find out if there's a Fed Ex in the neighbourhood so I can return them to you."

Crowley was the only one who found that funny. Sam and Dean continued to glare at him and Metatron. It was a good thing their eyes weren't lasers, Crowley thought; he and Metatron would look like Swiss cheese by now.

But no matter. The deal was done, even though it wasn't the deal he had envisioned. But everything would work out in the end, and this was a satisfactory first step. It was about time his side had a victory.

"As usual, it's been a pleasure," Crowley smirked. He did the hand wave again, and now Bobby was the one in chains. Bobby wasn't too worried. He'd make sure he got these two away from the Winchesters, and then he'd unleash the wrath of God on these two Demons. Literally.

Then they descended, and Crowley and Metatron hit Bobby with both barrels, rendering him briefly unconscious. And when he woke up, Bobby was in a cage. A figure stepped out of the shadows at the far side of the cage.

"Welcome to my humble abode," Lucifer said. A slow grin spread across his face. "I'm so glad to have a roommate again. We're going to have such a good time, Bobby."

Bobby stared at him, then rose quickly from the floor. He had no idea who this guy was, but Bobby didn't like the way he was looking at him. Like Bobby was a seven-course meal to be savoured.

He looked around at the cage, then down at himself. The chains were gone and Bobby had complete freedom of mobility. Crowley had to be kidding, right? Did he think a cage was going to hold God? Hell or not, he was busting out of here.

Bobby summoned up all his power and extended his arms, but nothing happened. He tried again. Nothing. What the hell?

His cellmate cleared his throat. Bobby turned around to look at him. "What?" Bobby said, anger and fear rising in his throat.

"Do you know where you are?" the man asked him.

"In Hell," Bobby replied shortly.

His cellmate was still smiling. "Thank you for that news flash. I just thought global warming had finally kicked in."

Demon or not, this guy was going to get an ass-kicking in a minute, Bobby thought. "What are you talking about?" he snapped. He was still trying to summon up his powers and still, none were forthcoming.

"You're in the pit of Hell. In a cage," the man said. "Come on, Bobby, you're better than that."

Bobby WAS better than that, but he'd been thrown a curveball and it took him a moment to adjust his swing. He gaped at his cellmate. No! It wasn't possible.

His cellmate brightened. "Ah. The light dawns at last." He walked up to Bobby and extended his hand. "Hi, I'm Lucifer. Your new best friend." He looked Bobby up and down with an exaggerated leer. "Or your Significant Other, maybe. I haven't decided yet."

Balls! This was bad. It was beyond bad. What the hell had Bobby done? If he ever saw Cas again, Bobby was gonna fall at his feet and apologize for every time he'd ever criticized him for making a bad decision.

"Your 'God Lite" skills won't work in here," Lucifer continued, amusement dancing in his eyes. "God Himself, the original God that is, built this enclosure to imprison me, and it's escape-proof. Believe me, I've tried." Lucifer looked at Bobby with mock sadness. "Only our Father can break its seals. You may currently have the title, but you don't have the power."

Lucifer sat down on the floor of the cage. "Might as well have a seat." He gestured to the floor in front of him. "Let's get better acquainted."

Bobby glared down at him defiantly, but he was scared. Sam had been Lucifer's last cellmate, and when Sam had miraculously returned, he'd been insane.

Lucifer cocked his head to the side and affected a pout. "Pity Brother Castiel couldn't have joined us. He's got such a rich history. His mind would have been like a box of chocolates; you truly never know what you're going to get. And he's kind of cute, too."

Lucifer smiled up at Bobby. "But you're no slouch, either. Abusive, alcoholic father. Dead wife. In fact, she died twice, did she not? All those years as a Hunter. So many murders, so little time. Oh, and our dear departed Rowena. How was she? Do tell."

Bobby tried his best to ignore Lucifer as he kept up his running commentary, listing all of Bobby's sins and poking at the most sore spots of Bobby's life. But Bobby knew that eventually, Lucifer would get inside his head. There was no escape. Hell was forever, and sooner or later, Bobby would succumb.

After the ground closed up and Bobby was gone, Dean found his cell phone on the pavement where he'd left it and called Cas. Cas would know what to do.

But the number just rang and rang. Neither Cas nor Gail picked up. After all this time, Cas had never gotten around to setting up voice mail.

"I'm a celestial being," he'd told Dean. "I'll know when you need me. Don't worry, I'll always be around."

But he wasn't around now; at least, he wasn't picking up. So Sam and Dean got into the car and drove over to the apartment. Dean pounded on the door but there was no answer, and when the brothers looked up at the windows from the street below, the place looked dark. They went back upstairs, not knowing what else to do. Were the two of them in Heaven? Maybe they should just wait. But after a few minutes, the brothers realized that would be pointless. They were Angels; it's not like they would just come traipsing down the hall. If they suddenly returned here from Heaven, they'd just appear inside the apartment and Sam and Dean would never know.

Dean was frantic, though. He was starting to get a really bad feeling about this. Cas had been incommunicado before, but not since Gail had come into their lives. And if Cas wasn't around, Gail always had been. Crowley had wanted Cas in the deal with Bobby, but he hadn't gotten him. Or had he? Maybe Crowley had had Cas and Gail held prisoner this whole time and had just been messing with the brothers. It certainly wouldn't be the first time he had screwed with them.

That decided it. "Come on, give me a hand here," Dean said, giving Sam a look. Sam knew what Dean was thinking. So they both took a run at the door and after a couple of tries, the door burst open and the brothers were inside.

"Ow!" Dean said, massaging his shoulder.

"Cas? Gail?" Sam called out. No response. He flipped on the hall light. Nobody home.

The brothers looked around, and Sam spotted the two cell phones sitting on the dining room table. He picked them up and looked at each one curiously.

"Their cell phones," he said to Dean. They looked odd sitting there side by side, like they'd been deliberately placed that way.

They walked into the bedrooms, first Gail's, then Cas's. The first bedroom had looked unused, and the second room was empty too, though the bed was unmade. Sam noticed something, though. There were a couple of hangers on the floor of the closet, and the closet was empty. He yanked open the bureau drawers. Empty. No clothes anywhere. Where were the clothes Cas had bought in Las Vegas?

Sam walked back to the other room and found no clothes there, either. Then he knew. Even if Cas had gotten rid of his Vegas clothes, there was no way. He knew Gail had a number of different outfits, and she'd bought more for their trip.

Dean was standing in the middle of the living room, frustrated. He'd come to the same conclusion as Sam. Their friends had taken a powder. Had Cas been so scared of the threats to Gail that he'd moved her elsewhere? But where was safe, really, when all your enemies were otherworldly beings? And why hadn't they told Sam and Dean where they were? It wasn't logical for their clothes to be gone if they were in Heaven, or in Hell, for that matter. They were just...gone.

What the hell were they supposed to do now? God was being kept prisoner in Hell, and their two Angel best friends were mysteriously missing. But he and Sam were humans, stuck here on Earth.

Sighing, Dean did the only thing he could do, and when Sam came out to where his brother stood, he did the same thing. They sank to their knees and prayed.

Castiel and Gail were sitting in the waiting area of the tattoo parlour when they both heard the brothers' prayers.

During the walk it had taken to get there, Cas had told her all about the meeting with Xavier and Ignatius, the tribunal process, and the summons he had in his pocket.

"Why are you so sure Bobby will be impeached?" Gail asked.

"He had a relationship with the mother of the King of Hell," Cas said. A smile was tugging at the corners of his mouth despite the seriousness of the situation and his nervousness to get going before it was too late. "The hardliners tend to frown on that sort of thing."

Gail figured he was probably right. Look how upset they were about her and Cas, and they were both Angels.

Now that she'd heard the whole story and understood how things really were, Gail agreed that Castiel could not attend the tribunal. They'd eat him alive. But: "What's the penalty for NOT showing up for the hearing?"

He breathed a laugh. "Does it really matter?"

Cas had a point. At least he hadn't just taken off without her, Gail thought. The Castiel she'd known before Las Vegas might have done just that, thinking he was doing the right thing, the noble thing. But they had grown so close now that they were just like two halves of a whole, and she was glad he hadn't left without her.

But where were they going to go? And what were they going to do when they got there? What about Sam and Dean, and Bobby?

Castiel didn't really have any answers for her. He hadn't exactly worked any of that out yet. The urgent thing had been to get to the tattoo parlour; afterwards, they would have more time to work out a plan.

Just before they'd entered the place, Castiel slowed down for a moment. He put down the bags and took her hands in his. "I know you're wondering why we're here," he said to Gail. Of course she was; she was still new to being an Angel, and he'd hoped she would never have to use this particular knowledge.

"We have to be warded," Castiel explained to her. "That means that no other Angel will be able to detect us."

Oh, she thought. Well, that made sense. If they were on the run from Heaven, that sounded like a good idea to her. But, wait: Look where they were. Oh, no.

"Does that mean we have to get tattooed?" she asked him.

He nodded. "Yes."

Gail's heart sank. She really didn't want to get a tattoo. But she'd have to suck it up. These were serious issues they were facing and she couldn't afford to be squeamish about it.

So she sighed but said nothing, and they'd gone into the place. Castiel had drawn the symbol they needed to have done on a piece of paper, and they had been waiting their turn to go in when they'd heard Sam and Dean's prayers.

They looked at each other. Gail smiled; she should have known. They'd probably tried calling, maybe even dropped by the apartment, and were frustrated that they couldn't get a hold of the couple.

Gail was still so new to hearing prayers that she could only pick up bits and pieces of what the brothers were saying. As far as she could tell, they had indeed been trying to reach the couple, and were wondering where they'd gone. She thought it was sweet that Sam and Dean were concerned and a little bit funny that they had resorted to praying to them. She'd have to tease Dean about that the next time she saw him. Gail sighed. Under the circumstances, she wondered when that would be.

But Cas heard everything. Sam and Dean were telling him about the trade Crowley had made for Bobby. What should they do, if anything?

Cas was puzzled. Why would Crowley want Bobby? Yes, Bobby was God now, but in all of history, the ruler of Heaven and the ruler of Hell had always had an unspoken detente. And Crowley held no particular animosity for Bobby; they went way back, along with the Winchesters and himself. There must be a reason Crowley wanted to speak with Bobby. Usually these types of meetings would be held on neutral ground, i.e. Earth, but if Bobby had agreed to go, everything must be OK, Castiel reasoned. Bobby had God's powers and would be in no danger.

Castiel was missing two very vital pieces of information. Communication by prayer was a very inexact science; usually the recipient heard the tone of the prayer more so than the content. Sam and Dean were coming through as more puzzled than alarmed. They too were wondering why Crowley would want Bobby, but the brothers also believed that because Bobby had God's powers, he could handle himself all right. Since this feeling was coming through clearly, Castiel was by extension not especially alarmed.

The second and most important piece of information that was not relayed to Castiel was the fact that Crowley had originally asked for Castiel himself to be included in the deal. This fact would have raised a red flag, and Castiel would have known there was something more sinister afoot than a summit meeting. But the brothers had not mentioned this fact, thinking that Cas would feel extremely guilty if he knew that he had not been available when Bobby had tried to reach him. And he would have, too. Had Castiel known that, his conscience would never have allowed him to go on the run with Gail.

But he did not know these things, so Cas decided to put the brothers on the back burner for now and go ahead with the original plan. Getting himself and Gail warded was the top priority; after that, and after they figured out where they should go next, they would figure out a way to contact Sam and Dean. Cas did feel a little bad about running out on his friends this way; but it was the way things had to be. Bobby had his own problems, and Sam and Dean were humans. He and Gail needed to take care of themselves now, and of each other.

They were called in next. Gail had asked if they could go in together; she had never gotten a tattoo before, and she'd heard that it hurt. Cas had warded himself once before when he'd been human and under attack by his fellow Angels, so he knew what to expect. He wished he could tell her that it wouldn't hurt, but he would be lying, so he settled for holding her hand instead.

"Any chance I could get a butterfly?" Gail joked nervously. Castiel smiled gently, and when the needle began to pierce Gail's skin, she winced. It was a little bit funny, Cas thought. Gail had been in so many dangerous situations since they'd met, and here she was, afraid of a needle.

"Squeeze my hand as hard as you want," he said to her. "It'll be over in a minute."

The irony was not lost on Gail, either. She'd been stabbed twice before, and tortured with an Angel blade, but she would swear this hurt more. Still, she stayed as brave as she could. For Cas.

Then, once they were warded, the two Angels rented a car and hit the road. Since identification was required to rent a car, which they did not have, Cas had had to apply a little persuasion in the form of two fingers to the forehead of the clerk. Gail had smiled at that. Life on the road as Angels was certainly different from life on the road as humans.

Once he was behind the wheel, Cas turned to Gail and said, "Pick a direction."

She smiled. This was starting almost to feel like another holiday to Gail, an adventure. "North," she said. "I've always heard good things about Canada."

There had been Ten Commandments, it was said. There were also:

Two Angels in Heaven, once co-conspirators, one with dark thoughts and one who had crossed over to the light.

Two current co-conspirators in Hell, both hungry for more power by whatever means necessary.

One dead witch, whose impulsive gift to the only man she'd ever loved would affect the lives of a few still living.

Two humans at the centre of it all, now torn between staying at home to await word from their friends and going back on the road to do the job they loved.

Two Werewolves turned Hellhounds, trapped in Hell's kennel, waiting to lose their souls.

Two Angels on the run from Heaven, cut off from their friends, about to enter a strange new world.

One retired God of Creation, as yet unaware of the immoral things that were being done in His name. One hardline Angel, about to proclaim himself God and lay waste to his enemies.

And the current God, sitting on the floor of Lucifer's cage, slowly being driven insane.

\- END OF BOOK 3. -

*


End file.
